Ethylene copolymer having enhanced film properties

ABSTRACT

The disclosure provides an ethylene copolymer having a density of from 0.912 g/cm3 to 0.925 g/cm3, a melt flow ratio (I21/I2) of from 20 to 30, and a normal comonomer distribution profile in a GPC-FTIR analysis, wherein the normal comonomer distribution profile has a slope of from −3.5 to −7.5, where the slope is defined as the number of short chain branches per 1000 carbons at a molecular weight of 300,000 minus the number of short chain branches per 1000 carbons at a molecular weight of 30,000. The ethylene copolymers have improved bulk density and when made into film, provide good physical properties.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED PATENT APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/985,039, filed on May 21, 2018, now issued as U.S. Pat. No.10,676,552, which claims priority on Canadian Patent Application Number2969627, filed May 30, 2017, both entitled “ETHYLENE COPOLYMER HAVINGENHANCED FILM PROPERTIES”, which are herein incorporated by reference intheir entirety.

FIELD OF THIS DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure is directed to the preparation of polyethylenecopolymers and the films made from them. A Ziegler-Natta catalyst, onehaving as an internal electron donor, a trialkylamine molecule, is usedto make the ethylene copolymers which have a relatively narrow molecularweight distribution. The ethylene copolymers have improved bulk densityand provide good dart impact properties when blown into film at arelatively low blow up ratio.

BACKGROUND

In the gas phase, traditional Ziegler-Natta catalysts tend to produceethylene copolymers having relatively broad molecular weightdistributions as well as broad and uneven comonomer distribution.Typically, an uneven comonomer distribution is demonstrated usinganalytical techniques which show that as the molecular weight of apolymer chain increases, the amount of side chain branching present inthe chain decreases. Single site catalysts, on the other hand canproduce ethylene copolymers having narrower molecular weights and a moreeven comonomer distribution among polymer chains of varying length.

It has been shown that the use of trimethylaluminum rather thantriethylaluminum as a cocatalyst in combination with a titanium basedZiegler-Natta catalyst can produce ethylene copolymers with reducedvalues of melt flow ratio (see for example U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,888,318;5,055,533; and Re 33,683).

Changes in the formulation of Ziegler-Natta catalysts, such as thenature of an internal or external electron donor molecule has allowedfor the production of ethylene copolymers with good bulk density andimproved performance in film applications, such as improved tearstrength, dart impact strength, and optical properties (see for exampleU.S. Pat. Nos. 5,139,986; 7,893,180; 6,191,239; and 6,228,792).

In some cases, an external electron donor can alter the melting point ofan ethylene/1-hexene copolymer made with a Ziegler-Natta catalyst (seeU.S. Pat. No. 6,417,301).

Other manipulations of an internal electron donor can cause someZiegler-Natta catalysts to have a different response to the presence ofhydrogen as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,671,149.

Changes in the amount of co-catalyst fed to a reactor along with aZiegler-Natta catalyst can also lead to ethylene/1-hexene copolymershaving improved dart impact properties and reduced hexane extractables(see U.S. Pat. No. 6,825,293).

Differences in the order of addition of the various Ziegler-Nattacatalyst components during synthesis can have a positive impact on theresulting polyethylene copolymer properties as discussed in U.S. Pat.No. 7,211,535.

Various iterations of the Ziegler-Natta catalyst have led to ethylenecopolymer compositions having not only reduced melt flow ratios, butalso to compositions having a more even comonomer distribution. Forexample, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,651,969, 8,993,693, and 9,487,608, atitanium based Zielger-Natta catalyst having an internal 2,6-lutidineelectron donor molecule provides ethylene/1-hexene copolymers having arelatively narrow molecular weight distribution and a “single sitecatalyst” like comonomer distribution. These resins exhibit a goodbalance of tear and impact properties when made into film.

The present disclosure provides ethylene copolymers having intermediatemolecular weight distributions and intermediate comonomer distributionsrelative to resins made with traditional Ziegler-Natta catalysts andsingle site catalysts. The resins show advantages associated withproducts which arise from both of these catalyst types.

SUMMARY

Provided in an embodiment of the disclosure is an ethylene copolymercomprising ethylene and an alpha olefin having 3-8 carbon atoms, theethylene copolymer having a density of from 0.912 g/cm³ to 0.925 g/cm³,a melt index (I₂) of from 0.1 g/10 min to 5.0 g/10 min, a melt flowratio (I₂₁/I₂) of from 20 to 30, and a normal comonomer distributionprofile in a GPC-FTIR analysis, wherein the normal comonomerdistribution profile has a slope of from −3.5 to −7.5, having dimensionsof [(SCB/1000C)/Daltons], where the slope is defined as the number ofshort chain branches per 1000 carbons at a molecular weight of 300,000minus the number of short chain branches per 1000 carbons at a molecularweight of 30,000.

One embodiment of the disclosure provides an ethylene copolymer having acharacteristic composition distribution parameter, βTp1 which satisfiesthe relationship: β_(Tp1)≤22750−400 (SCB/1000C−2.5×I₂).

One embodiment of the disclosure provides an ethylene copolymer having acharacteristic composition transition parameter, ϕ_(Tp1→Tp2) whichsatisfies the relationship: ϕ_(Tp1→Tp2)≤4230−140[SCB/1000C+0.5×(I₂₁/I₂)−2×(I₂].

One embodiment of the disclosure provides an ethylene copolymer having amolecular weight distribution (M_(w)/M_(n)) of from 2.5 to 4.0.

One embodiment of the disclosure provides an ethylene copolymer having amultimodal profile in a TREF analysis, the multimodal profile comprisingtwo intensity maxima occurring at elution temperatures Tp1 and Tp2,wherein Tp1 is between 80° C. and 90° C. and Tp2 is between 90° C. and100° C.

One embodiment of the disclosure provides an ethylene copolymer in whichless than 0.5 wt % of the copolymer elutes at a temperature of above100° C. in a TREF analysis.

One embodiment of the disclosure provides an ethylene copolymercomprising ethylene and 1-hexene.

One embodiment of the disclosure provides an ethylene copolymer having aCDB150 of from 20 wt % to 40 wt %.

One embodiment of the disclosure provides an ethylene copolymer having amelt index (I₂) of from 0.2 to 2.0 g/10 min.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, an ethylene copolymer when made intoa blown film having a 0.8 mil thickness at a die gap of 85 mil and ablow up ratio (BUR) of 2:1 has a dart impact of greater than 350 g/mil.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, an ethylene copolymer is made with aZiegler-Natta catalyst.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, an ethylene copolymer is made with aZiegler-Natta catalyst in a gas phase polymerization process.

One embodiment of the disclosure provides an ethylene copolymer madewith a Ziegler-Natta catalyst comprising:

a) a calcined silica support;

b) a first aluminum compound having the formulaAl¹R_(b)(OR)_(a)X_(3−(a+b)), wherein a+b=3 and b≥1, R is a C₁₋₁₀ alkylradical, and X is a chlorine atom;

c) a magnesium compound having the formula Mg(R⁵)₂ where each R⁵ isindependently selected from the group consisting of C₁₋₈ alkyl radicals;

d) a reactive organic halide selected from the group consisting of CCl₄and C₃₋₆ secondary and tertiary alkyl chlorides or a mixture thereof;

e) a titanium compound having the formula Ti(OR²)_(c)X_(d) wherein R² isselected from the group consisting of a C₁₋₄ alkyl radical, and a C₆₋₁₀aromatic radical, X is selected from the group consisting of a chlorineatom and a bromine atom, c is 0 or an integer up to 4 and d is 0 or aninteger up to 4 and the sum of c+d is the valence of the Ti atom;

f) an electron donor wherein the electron donor is a trialkylaminecompound; and

g) a second aluminum compound having the formulaAl²R_(b)(OR)_(a)X_(3−(a+b)), wherein a+b=3 and b≥1, R is a C₁₋₁₀ alkylradical, and X is a chlorine atom.

In an embodiment of the disclosure an ethylene copolymer has a normalcomonomer distribution profile with a slope of from −3.5 to −7.5, wherethe slope is defined as the number of short chain branches per 1000carbons at a molecular weight of 300,000 minus the number of short chainbranches per 1000 carbons at a molecular weight of 30,000.

In an embodiment of the disclosure an ethylene copolymer has a bulkdensity of greater than 25 lbs/ft³.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, a blown film has a dart impact of≥350 g/mil when the film has a thickness of 0.8 mil and is made at a diegap of 85 mil and a blow up ratio (BUR) of 2:1.

In an embodiment of the disclosure a blown film has a machine directiontear of ≥400 g/mil when the film has a thickness of 0.8 mil and is madeat a die gap of 85 mil and a blow-up ratio (BUR) of 2:1.

Provided in an embodiment of the disclosure is an ethylene copolymercomprising ethylene and an alpha olefin having 3-8 carbon atoms, theethylene copolymer having a density of from 0.912 g/cm³ to 0.925 g/cm³,a melt index (I₂) of from 0.1 g/10 min to 5.0 g/10 min, a melt flowratio (I₂₁/I₂) of from 20 to 30, a normal comonomer distribution profilein a GPC-FTIR analysis, and a characteristic composition distributionparameter, βTp1 which satisfies the relationship: β_(Tp1)≤22750−400(SCB/1000C−2.5×I₂).

Provided in an embodiment of the disclosure is an ethylene copolymercomprising ethylene and an alpha olefin having 3-8 carbon atoms, theethylene copolymer having a density of from 0.912 g/cm³ to 0.925 g/cm³,a melt index (I₂) of from 0.1 g/10 min to 5.0 g/10 min, a melt flowratio (I₂₁/I₂) of from 20 to 30, a normal comonomer distribution profilein a GPC-FTIR analysis, and a characteristic composition transitionparameter, ϕ_(Tp1→Tp2) which satisfies the relationship:ϕ_(Tp1→Tp2)≤4230−140 [SCB/1000C+0.5×(I₂₁/I₂)−2×I₂].

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A shows a gel permeation chromatograph with Fourier transforminfra-red (GPC-FTIR) detection obtained for an ethylene copolymer madeaccording to the present disclosure. The comonomer content, shown as thenumber of short chain branches per 1000 carbons (left y-axis), is givenrelative to the copolymer molecular weight (x-axis). The conventionalGPC weight fraction, (dW/dlog(MW), is shown (right y-axis) Thedownwardly sloping line (from left to right) is the short chainbranching (in short chain branches per 1000 carbons atoms) determined byFTIR. As can be seen in the Figure, the number of short chain branchesdecreases at higher molecular weights, and hence the comonomerincorporation is said to be “normal”.

FIG. 1B shows a gel permeation chromatograph with Fourier transforminfra-red (GPC-FTIR) detection obtained for an ethylene copolymer madeaccording to the present disclosure. The comonomer content, shown as thenumber of short chain branches per 1000 carbons (y-axis), is givenrelative to the copolymer molecular weight (x-axis). The downwardlysloping line (from left to right) is the short chain branching (in shortchain branches per 1000 carbons atoms) determined by FTIR. As can beseen in FIG. 1B, the number of short chain branches decreases at highermolecular weights, and hence the comonomer incorporation is said to be“normal”.

FIG. 1C shows a gel permeation chromatograph with Fourier transforminfra-red (GPC-FTIR) detection obtained for a comparative ethylenecopolymer. The comonomer content, shown as the number of short chainbranches per 1000 carbons (y-axis), is given relative to the copolymermolecular weight (x-axis). The downwardly sloping line (from left toright) is the short chain branching (in short chain branches per 1000carbons atoms) determined by FTIR. As can be seen in the Figure, thenumber of short chain branches decreases at higher molecular weights,and hence the comonomer incorporation is said to be “normal”.

FIGS. 2A, 2B and 2C show the cross-fractionation chromatography (CFC)analysis of inventive ethylene copolymer 1, inventive ethylene copolymer2 and comparative ethylene copolymer A respectively.

FIG. 3 shows a plot of the equation: βT1=22750−400 (SCB/1000C−2.5×12).The βT1 values (the y-axis) are plotted against the termSCB/1000C−2.5×I₂ (the x-axis) for inventive ethylene copolymers 1 and 2as well as for several commercially available ethylene/1-hexenecopolymers.

FIG. 4 shows a plot of the equation: ϕ_(T1→T2=)4230−140[SCB/1000C+0.5×(I₂₁/I₂)−2×I₂]. The ϕ_(Tp1→T2) values (the y-axis) areplotted against the term [SCB/1000C+0.5×(I₂₁/I₂)−2×I₂] (the x-axis) forinventive ethylene copolymers 1 and 2 as well as for severalcommercially available ethylene/1-hexene copolymers.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present disclosure concerns the production of ethylene copolymers inthe gas phase using a Ziegler-Natta catalyst. The Ziegler-Natta catalystis formulated with a specific type of internal electron donor compound.

Polymerization Catalyst

The polymerization catalyst used in the present disclosure is aZiegler-Natta type catalyst.

In the present disclosure, the Ziegler-Natta catalyst comprises: (a) aninorganic oxide support; (b) a first aluminum compound (to chemicallytreat the surface of the inorganic oxide support); (c) a magnesiumcompound; (d) a halide donor (to precipitate magnesium halide onreaction with the magnesium compound); (e) a titanium compound; (f) anelectron donor compound; and (g) a second aluminum compound (to serve asa catalyst reductant).

The first aluminum compound is added to the inorganic oxide support tochemically treat it. The second aluminum compound is added at some pointduring the manufacture of the Ziegler-Natta catalyst and serves as areductant.

The inorganic oxide support used for the Ziegler-Natta catalysts may, inthe present disclosure, comprise an inorganic oxide selected from analumina or a silica material and will have pendant reactive moieties.For example, the reactive moieties may be a silanol group or siloxanebridges.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the inorganic oxide support used inthe synthesis of the Ziegler-Natta catalyst is silica.

In embodiments of the disclosure, the silica support has an averageparticle size from about 0.1 to about 150 microns, or from about 10 toabout 150 microns, or about 20 to 100 microns.

In embodiments of the disclosure, the silica support has a surface areawhich is greater than about 100 m²/g, or greater than about 250 m²/g, orfrom about 300 m²/g to about 800 m²/g.

In embodiments of the disclosure, the silica support has a pore volumefrom about 0.5 to about 5.0 ml/g, or from about 0.7 to about 3.0 ml/g.

Silica supports suitable for use in an embodiment of the presentdisclosure have a high surface area and are amorphous. Suitablenon-limiting examples of such silica supports include commerciallyavailable silicas marketed under the trademark of Sylopol® 958, 955 and2408 by Davison Catalysts a Division of W. R. Grace and Company andES-70W by Ineos Silica.

The inorganic oxide support can be heat treated and/or chemicallytreated to reduce the level of surface hydroxyl (OH) groups and absorbedwater in a similar fashion to that described by A. Noshay and F. J.Karol in Transition Metal Catalyzed Polymerizations, Ed. R. Quirk, 1989,pg. 396.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the inorganic oxide support is heattreated or “dried” prior to chemical treatment. Drying a support is alsoknown as “calcining” a support.

The inorganic support may be dried or calcined by heating it to atemperature of at least about 200° C. for up to 24 hours, or to atemperature of from about 500° C. to about 800° C. for about 2 to 20hours, or for about 4 to 10 hours. The resulting support may in anembodiment of the disclosure be free of adsorbed water and have asurface hydroxyl content of from about 0.1 to about 5 mmol/g, or fromabout 0.5 to about 3 mmol/g (where mmol is mmol of OH, and g is gram ofsupport).

The amount of hydroxyl groups present in silica support may bedetermined according to the method disclosed by J. B. Peri and A. L.Hensley, Jr., in J. Phys. Chem., 72 (8), 2926, 1968, the entire contentsof which are incorporated herein by reference.

While heating (e.g. “calcining”) is one of the methods that may be usedto remove or reduce OH groups present in an inorganic support material,such as for example silica, the OH groups may also be removed or reducedby chemical means. For example, a desired proportion of the OH groupspresent in an inorganic support may be reacted with a suitable chemicalagent, such as a hydroxyl reactive alkylaluminum compound (e.g. triethylaluminum) or a silane compound. This method of treatment has beendisclosed in the literature and for two relevant examples see: U.S. Pat.No. 4,719,193 in 1988 and by Noshay A. and Karol F. J. in TransitionMetal Catalyzed Polymerizations, Ed. R. Quirk, 396, 1989.

Chemical treatment may in an embodiment of the disclosure involvetreatment of an inorganic oxide support with a first aluminum compound.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, an inorganic oxide support istreated with a first aluminum compound having the formulaAl¹R_(b)(OR)_(a)X_(3−(a+b)), wherein a+b=3 and b≥1, R is a C₁₋₁₀ alkylradical, and X is a chlorine atom.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the first aluminum compound isselected from the group consisting of trimethyl aluminum (TMA), triethylaluminum (TEAL), diethyl aluminum ethoxide, diisobutyl aluminumethoxide, tri-isoprenyl aluminum, tri-isobutyl aluminum (TiBAL), diethylaluminum chloride (DEAC), tri-n-hexyl aluminum (TnHAl), tri-n-octylaluminum (TnOAl), and mixtures thereof.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the magnesium compound used in theformulation of the Ziegler-Nata catalyst has the formula(R⁵)_(e)MgX_(2-e) wherein each R⁵ is independently a C₁₋₂₀ hydrocarbylgroup, e is 1 or 2; and X is a halide.

The magnesium compound is combined with a halide donor to form amagnesium halide composition as part of the Ziegler-Natta catalyst.

Some commercially available magnesium compounds which may be used in anembodiment of the disclosure include butyl octyl magnesium, dibutylmagnesium, diphenyl magnesium, ditolyl magnesium, dibenzyl magnesium,diisopropyl magnesium, dihexyl magnesium, diethyl magnesium, propylbutyl magnesium, and butyl ethyl magnesium.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the magnesium compound used in theformulation of the Ziegler-Nata catalyst has the formula Mg(R⁵)₂ whereineach R⁵ is independently a C₁₋₂₀ hydrocarbyl group.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the magnesium compound used in theformulation of the Ziegler-Nata catalyst has the formula Mg(R⁵)₂ whereineach R⁵ is independently a C₁₋₈ alkyl group.

In cases where the magnesium compound is not readily soluble in thediluents of choice for the catalyst preparation, it may be desirable toadd a solubilizing compound such as an organoaluminum or organozinccompound prior to use. Such compounds are discussed in, for example,U.S. Pat. Nos 4,127,507 and 4,250,288. Alternatively, where magnesiumcompounds provide solutions which are overly viscous in diluents ofchoice, solubilizers such as organoaluminum or organozinc may be used todecrease the viscosity of the solution.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the magnesium compound used has beentreated with a solubilizing agent (or viscosity improving agent) and isformulated as a solution in a suitable hydrocarbon solvent. Suchmagnesium compound containing solutions are commercially available fromsuppliers such as Albermarle, Akzo Nobel, etc. For example, magnesiumcompounds available in hydrocarbon solution include solutions ofbutylethylmagnesium or dibutylmagnesium which have been treated with anorganoaluminum compound to improve solubility and/or reduce solutionviscosity.

The halide donor is not specifically defined and can be any suitablehalide source compound which is capable of providing an active (i.e.reactive) halide ion for reaction with an organomagensium bond in themagnesium compound. Preferably the halide donor will react spontaneouslyand fully with the magnesium compound, but a halide donor which requiresa transfer agent such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,031,056 is alsocontemplated for use.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the halide donor is a protic halideHX, or a reactive organic halide selected from the group consisting ofCCl₄ and C₁₋₁₀ primary, secondary or tertiary alkyl halides, and mixturethereof.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the halide donor is CCl₄ or one ormore secondary or tertiary chlorides having the formula R⁶Cl wherein R⁶is selected from the group consisting of C₃₋₁₂ secondary and tertiaryalkyl radicals.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the halide donor is a reactiveorganic halide selected from the group consisting of CCl₄ and C₃₋₆secondary and tertiary alkyl chlorides or a mixture thereof.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the halide donor is selected fromthe group comprising sec-butyl chloride, tert-butyl chloride andsec-propyl chloride.

In an embodiment of the disclosure the halide donor is tert-butylchloride, (t-BuCI).

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the titanium compound used in theformulation of the Ziegler-Natta catalyst has the formulaTi(OR²)_(c)X_(d) where R² is selected from the group consisting of aC₁₋₂₀ alkyl radical, and a C₆₋₁₀ aromatic radical, X is selected fromthe group consisting of a chlorine atom and a bromine atom, c is 0 or aninteger up to 4, and d is 0 or an integer up to 4, and the sum of c+d isthe valence of the Ti atom.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the titanium compound is selectedfrom the group consisting of TiCl₃, TiCl₄, Ti(OC₄H₉)₄, Ti(OC₃H₇)₄,Ti(OC₄H₉)Cl₃, Ti(OCOCH₃)Cl₃, Ti(OCOC₆H₅)C₁₃ and mixtures thereof.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the titanium compound is selectedfrom the group consisting of Ti(O-tert-butyl)₄ (i.e. Ti(OC₄H₉)₄), TiCl₄and mixtures thereof.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the titanium compound is titaniumtetrachloride, TiCl₄.

The Ziegler-Natta catalyst of the present disclosure will additionallycomprise an electron donor molecule.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the electron donor molecule will bean amine compound.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the electron donor molecule will bean amine compound, R⁸ ₃N, where each R⁸ is independently a C₁₋₃₀hydrocarbyl group.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the electron donor molecule will bea trialkyl amine compound.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the electron donor molecule will bea trialkyl amine compound, R⁸ ₃N where each R⁸ is independently a C₁₋₃₀alkyl group.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the electron donor molecule will bea trialkyl amine compound, R⁸ ₃N, where R⁸ is a C₁₋₂₀ primary alkylgroup.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the electron donor molecule may beselected from the group consisting of trimethylamine (Me₃N),tri-iso-propylamine (iPr₃N), tri-n-propylamine (nPr₃N), triethylamine(Et₃N), and mixtures thereof.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the electron donor molecule will betriethylamine, Et₃N.

The second aluminum compound will in an embodiment of the disclosurehave the formula Al²R_(b)(OR)_(a)X_(3−(a+b)), wherein a+b=3 and b≥1, Ris a C₁₋₁₀ alkyl radical, and X is a chlorine atom.

The first and second aluminum compounds may be the same or different.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the second aluminum compound isselected from the group consisting of trimethyl aluminum (TMA), triethylaluminum (TEAL), diethyl aluminum ethoxide, diisobutyl aluminumethoxide, isoprenyl aluminum, tri-isobutyl aluminum (TiBAL), diethylaluminum chloride (DEAC), tri-n-hexyl aluminum (TnHAl), tri-n-octylaluminum (TnOAl), and mixtures thereof.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the amount of the first aluminumcompound added to an inorganic oxide support is such that the amount ofaluminum (Al¹) on the support prior to adding other Ziegler-Nattacatalyst components will be from about 0.5 to about 2.5 weight %, orfrom about 1.0 to about 2.0 wt % based on the weight of the inorganicoxide support.

In embodiments of the disclosure the halide donor is added in a quantitysuch that the molar ratio of active halide (e.g. chloride from areactive organic halide) to magnesium, X:Mg will be from about 1.2:1 toabout 6:1, or from about 1.5:1 to about 6:1, or from about 1.5:1 toabout 5:1, or from about 1.5:1 to about 3:1, or from about 1.9:1 toabout 3:1, or from about 1.9:1 to about 2.2:1. In an embodiment of thedisclosure, the titanium compound is added in a quantity such thattitanium is present in an amount from about 0.20 to about 3 weight %, orfrom about 0.20 to about 1.5 wt %, or from about 0.25 to about 1.25 wt%, or from about 0.25 to about 1.0 wt %, or from about 0.25 to about0.70 wt %, or from about 0.35 to about 0.65 wt % (where wt %, is theweight percent of titanium present based on the final weight of thecatalyst, including the inorganic oxide support).

In embodiments of the disclosure the molar ratio of magnesium from themagnesium compound to titanium from the titanium compound, Mg:Ti may befrom about 0.5:1 to about 50:1, or from about 1:1 to 20:1, or from about2:1 to about 15:1, or from about 4:1 to about 15:1, or from about 6:1 toabout 15:1, or from about 2:1 to about 12:1, or from about 2:1 to about10:1, or from about 3:1 to about 10:1.

In embodiments of the disclosure the molar ratio of the electron donormolecule to titanium from the titanium compound, ED:Ti will be fromabout 0.1:1 to about 18:1, or from about 0.1:1 to about 15:1, or fromabout 0.5:1 to about 15:1, or from about 1:1 to about 15:1, or fromabout 2:1 to about 12:1, or from about 3:1 to about 12:1, or from about3:1 to about 10:1.

In an embodiment of the disclosure the molar ratio of aluminum from thesecond aluminum compound to titanium from the titanium compound, Al²:Tiwill be from about 1:1 to about 8:1, or from about 1.5:1 to about 7:1,or from about 2:1 to 6:1.

In an embodiment of the disclosure the ratio of total aluminum from thefirst and the second aluminum compounds to titanium from the titaniumcompound, Al¹+Al²: Ti will be from about 1:1 to about 15:1, or fromabout 2:1 to about 15:1, or from about 2:1 to about 12:1, or from about3:1 to about 10:1.

In embodiments of the disclosure, from about 10 to about 85 weight %, orfrom about 30 to about 80 weight %, or from about 50 to 75 weight % ofthe total aluminum present in the Ziegler-Natta catalyst is used tochemically treat the inorganic oxide support.

In embodiments of the disclosure, the ratio of total aluminum from thefirst and the second aluminum compounds to magnesium from the magnesiumcompound, Al¹+Al²:Mg will be from about 1:0.1 to about 1:3, or fromabout 1:0.35 to about 1:3, or from about 1:0.40 to about 1:3, or fromabout 1:0.40 to about 1:2.

The Ziegler-Natta catalyst components (a)-(f) may be combined in ahydrocarbon solvent or diluent such as an inert C₅₋₁₀ hydrocarbon thatmay be unsubstituted or is substituted by a C₁₋₄ alkyl radical. Suitableinert hydrocarbons include pentane, isopentane, n-hexane, variousisomeric hexanes, heptane, octane, isooctane, cyclohexane, methylcyclohexane, dimethyl cyclohexane, dodecane, hydrogenated naphtha andISOPAR®E (a solvent available from Exxon Chemical Company) and mixturesthereof.

In an embodiment of the disclosure a Ziegler-Natta catalyst is preparedby carrying out the following steps in a hydrocarbon solvent or diluentat a temperature from 0° C. to 100° C.:

a) contacting a calcined silica support with a first aluminum compoundhaving the formula Al¹R_(b)(OR)_(a)X_(3−(a+b)), wherein a+b=3 and b≥1, Ris a C₁₋₁₀ alkyl radical, and X is a chlorine atom to give a silicasupport having from 0.5 to 2.5 weight % of aluminum present;

b) contacting the resulting product with a magnesium compound having theformula Mg(R⁵)₂ where each R⁵ is independently selected from the groupconsisting of C₁₋₈ alkyl radicals to provide from 0.25 to 8.0 weight %of Mg based on the weight of the silica support (and where the magnesiumcompound may contain an aluminum alkyl as a thinning agent);

c) contacting the resulting product with a reactive organic halideselected from the group consisting of CCl₄ and C₃₋₆secondary andtertiary alkyl chlorides or a mixture thereof to provide a Cl:Mg molarratio from 1.5:1 to 5:1;

d) contacting the resulting product with a titanium compound having theformula Ti(OR²)_(c)X_(d) wherein R² is selected from the groupconsisting of a C₁₋₄ alkyl radical, and a C₆₋₁₀ aromatic radical, X isselected from the group consisting of a chlorine atom and a bromineatom, c is 0 or an integer up to 4, and d is 0 or an integer up to 4,and the sum of c+d is the valence of the Ti atom, to provide from 0.20to 3 weight % of Ti based on the weight of the final catalyst;

e) contacting the resulting product with an electron donor in an ED:Tiratio from 0.1:1 to 18:1, where the electron donor is an amine compound,R⁸ ₃N, where each R⁸ is independently a C₁₋₃₀ hydrocarbyl group;

f) contacting the resulting product with a second aluminum compoundhaving the formula Al²R_(b)(OR)_(a)X_(3−(a+b)), wherein a+b=3 and b≥1, Ris a C₁₋₁₀ alkyl radical, and Xis a chlorine atom, to provide a molarratio of Al²:Ti of from 1:1 to 8:1.

In the present disclosure, the order of addition of the titaniumcompound, the electron donor, and the second aluminum compound is notessential and may be varied in an attempt to maximize the productivityof the Ziegler-Natta catalyst.

In the present disclosure, the Ziegler-Natta catalyst is used incombination with one or more than one co-catalyst.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the co-catalyst has the formulaAl³R_(b)(OR)_(a)X_(3−(a+b)), wherein a+b=3 and b≥1, R is a C₁₋₂₀hydrocarbyl group, and X is a halide.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the co-catalyst is selected from thegroup consisting of trialkyl aluminums, alkyl aluminum chlorides, andmixtures thereof, non-limiting examples of which include triethylaluminum, tri-n-propyl aluminum, tri-iso-propyl aluminum, tri-n-butylaluminum, tri-iso-butyl aluminum, tri-n-hexyl aluminum, diethyl aluminumchloride, diethyl aluminum ethoxide, di-n-butyl aluminum chloride, andmixtures thereof.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the co-catalyst is triethylaluminum.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the co-catalyst is tri-n-hexylaluminum.

Polymerization Process

The polymerization process used in an embodiment of the presentdisclosure is a gas phase polymerization process. Generally, a monomerfeed comprising at least ethylene and optionally one or more C₃₋₈alpha-olefins is fed to a gas phase fluidized bed reactor or to astirred bed reactor. In both the fluidized bed and stirred bed thepolymer particles removed from the reactor are degassed to remove anyvolatile material and the resulting polymer (with entrained catalyst)may then be further treated (e.g. stabilizers added and pelletized ifnecessary).

A fluidized bed is generally formed by the flow of a gaseous fluidthrough a bed of particles. The direction of flow is opposite gravity.The frictional drag of the gas on the solid particles overcomes theforce of gravity and suspends the particles in a fluidized statereferred to as the fluidized bed. To maintain the particles in afluidized state, the superficial gas velocity through the bed mustexceed the minimum flow required for fluidization.

Generally, then, a conventional fluidized bed polymerization process forproducing ethylene copolymers (or other types of polymers) is carriedout by passing a gaseous stream comprising one or more monomers (e.g.ethylene and one or more alpha olefins) continuously through a fluidizedbed reactor in the presence of a catalyst at a velocity sufficient tomaintain the bed of solid particles in a suspended condition.

A fluidized bed process is typically a cyclical process in which thefluidizing medium, is heated within the reactor by the heat of thepolymerization reaction and then passed from the reactor to a compressorunit and from a compressor unit to a cooling unit. After passing througha compressor unit, the cooled fluidizing medium is returned to thepolymerization reactor. Hence, the hot gaseous stream exiting frompolymerization reactor and which may contain unreacted monomer iscontinuously withdrawn from the reactor, compressed, cooled and recycledto the reactor. The product polymer (e.g. an ethylene copolymer) iscontinuously withdrawn from the reactor while make-up monomers (e.g.ethylene and/or alpha olefin comonomers) are added to the reactorsystem. The addition of monomers to the reactor system may includeaddition to the reactor per se or any other part of the reactor systemsuch as anywhere in the recycle stream. Make up monomers are added toreplace those monomers consumed during polymerization. Fluidization isachieved by a high rate of fluid recycle to and through the bed,typically on the order of about 50 times the rate of feed or make-upfluid. This high rate of fluid recycle provides the requisitesuperficial gas velocity needed to maintain the fluidized bed. Typicalminimum superficial gas velocities required to maintain fluidization arefrom about 0.2 to about 0.5 feet/second and so the superficial gasvelocity used during polymerization may be from at least 0.2 feet/secondabove the minimum flow for fluidization or from about 0.4 to about 0.7feet/second. For examples of a typical fluidized bed reactor and itsoperation in the polymerization of olefins see U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,543,399;4,588,790; 5,028, 670; 5,317,036; 5,352,749; 5,405,922; 5,436,304;5,453,471; 5,462,999; 5,616,661; 5,668,228 and 6,689,847.

A fluidized bed reactor generally comprises a reaction zone and avelocity reduction zone. The reactor may comprise a generallycylindrical region beneath an expanded section (the velocity reductionzone or disentrainment zone). The reaction zone includes a bed ofgrowing polymer particles, formed polymer particles and a minor amountof catalyst all fluidized by the continuous flow of polymerizable andmodifying gaseous components, including inert components in the form ofmake-up feed and recycle fluid through the reaction zone.

To ensure complete fluidization, the recycle stream and, where desired,at least part of the make-up stream can be returned through a recycleline to the reactor, at an inlet positioned below the fluidized bed. Afluidized bed reactor has a gas distributor plate above the point ofreturn to aid in the distribution of gaseous medium flow and touniformly fluidize the bed. The distributer plate is a plate with holesin it to allow the passage of the fluidizing or recycle fluids into thereactor. The distributer plate also supports the solid particles (e.g.seed bed particles) prior to start-up (i.e. before the particles arefluidized) or when the reactor system is shut down. The stream passingupwardly through the bed helps remove the heat of reaction generated bythe exothermic polymerization reaction.

Make-up fluids, such as monomers may be fed at a point below thedistributor plate via a feed line and/or recycle line. The compositionof the recycle stream may be measured by a gas analyzer and thecomposition and amount of the make-up stream may be adjusted to maintainan essentially steady state composition within the reaction zone. Thegas analyzer may be positioned to receive gas from a point between thevelocity reduction zone and heat exchanger, or between a compressor andheat exchanger.

The portion of the gaseous stream flowing through the fluidized bedwhich did not react in the bed becomes the recycle stream which leavesthe reaction zone, passes into the velocity reduction zone above the bedwhere a major portion of the entrained particles drop back onto the bedthereby reducing solid particle carryover, and on to the compressor andheat exchanger system.

The recycle stream is then compressed in a compressor and passed throughheat exchanger where the heat of reaction is removed from the recyclestream before it is returned to the bed. Note that the heat exchangercan also be positioned before the compressor. The heat exchanger can be,for example, a shell and tube heat exchanger, with the recycle gastraveling through the tubes.

The recycle stream exiting the heat exchange zone is then returned tothe reactor at its base and from there to the fluidized bed by passagethrough the distributor plate. A deflector may be installed at the inletto the reactor to prevent contained polymer particles from settling outand agglomerating into a solid mass and to maintain entrained or tore-entrain any particles or liquid which may settle out or becomedisentrained.

The polymer product is discharged from the reactor using an exit linepositioned above the distribution plate. It is desirable to separate anyfluid from the product and to return the fluid to the reactor vessel.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the polymerization catalystenters the reactor in solid, slurry or liquid form at a point somewhereabove the distributer plate through a catalyst feed line. If one or moreco-catalysts are to be added separately from the catalyst, as issometimes the case, the one or more co-catalysts may be introducedseparately into the reaction zone or below the reactor zone or anotherlocation in the polymerization reactor system, where they will reactwith the catalyst to form the catalytically active reaction productand/or affect the reaction proceeding in the reactor system. However,the catalyst and co-catalyst(s) may be mixed prior to their introductioninto the reaction zone.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the Zielger-Natta catalyst is fed tothe reactor above a distributor plate into the bed of growing polymerparticles using a metering device. One such device is disclosed in U.S.Pat. No. 3,779,712.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the co-catalyst (in neat form or ina solution made with a hydrocarbon solvent) is fed to the reactor at apoint below a distributor plate using a metering device.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the co-catalyst (in neat form or ina solution made with a hydrocarbon solvent) is fed to the reactor at apoint above a distributor plate and into the bed of growing polymerparticles using a metering device.

The co-catalyst may be fed to the reactor to provide from 10 to 50,preferably 10 to 40, more preferably from 17 to 30, most preferably from20 to 26 ppm of aluminum (Al ppm) based on the polymer production rate.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the molar ratio of total aluminumfrom the co-catalyst and the Ziegler-Natta catalyst to the titanium fromthe Ziegler-Natta catalyst, Al^(TOTAL):Ti is at least about 25:1.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the molar ratio of total aluminumfrom the co-catalyst and the Ziegler-Natta catalyst to the titanium fromthe Ziegler-Natta catalyst, Al^(TOTAL):Ti is from about 25:1 to about80:1.

A continuity additive may be added in situ to the reactor system via anappropriate mechanism such as solid, liquid or slurry feed line.

Optionally, the reactor system may include sensors or probes to detectstatic levels and changes thereof.

The reaction vessel may, by way of non-limiting example, have an innerdiameter of at least about 2 feet, and is generally greater than about10 feet.

The reactor pressure in a gas phase process may vary from about 100 psig(690 kPa) to about 600 psig (4138 kPa), or from about 200 psig (1379kPa) to about 400 psig (2759 kPa), or from about 250 psig (1724 kPa) toabout 350 psig (2414 kPa).

The reactor temperature in a gas phase process may vary from about 30°C. to about 120° C. In embodiments of the disclosure, the reactortemperature is operated at less than about 40° C., or less than about30° C., or less than about 20° C., or less than about 15° C. below themelting point of the polyolefin being produced. The process can also berun at higher temperatures, such as for example less than about 10° C.,or less than about 5° C. below the melting point of the polyolefin beingproduced. Ethylene copolymers, for example, may have a melting point inthe range of approximately 115° C. to 130° C.

The gas phase process may be operated in a condensed mode, where aninert condensable fluid is introduced to the process to help remove theheat of the polymerization reaction. Condensable fluids are sometimesreferred to as induced condensing agents or ICA's. For further detailsof a condensed mode processes see for example U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,342,749and 5,436,304. An example of a condensable fluid for use with condensedmode operation is n-pentane or isopentane.

In embodiments of the present disclosure, the fluidized bed reactor iscapable of producing greater than 500 lbs of polymer per hour (227Kg/hr) to about 175,000 lbs/hr (80,000 Kg/hr) or higher of polymer. Infurther embodiments, the reactor utilized is capable of producinggreater than 1,000 lbs/hr (455 Kg/hr), or greater than 10,000 lbs/hr(4540 Kg/hr), or greater than 25,000 lbs/hr (11,300 Kg/hr), or greaterthan 35,000 lbs/hr (15,900 Kg/hr), or greater than 50,000 lbs/hr (22,700Kg/hr), or greater than 65,000 lbs/hr (29,545 Kg/hr), or greater than85,000 lbs/hr (38,636 Kg/hr), or greater than 100,000 lbs/hr (45,454Kg/hr), or greater than 110,000 lbs/hr (50,000 Kg/hr).

On start-up, the reactor is generally charged with a bed of particulatepolymer particles (e.g. the seed bed) before gas flow is initiated. Suchparticles help to prevent the formation of localized “hot spots” whencatalyst feed is initiated. They may be the same as the polymer to beformed or different. When different, they are preferably withdrawn withthe desired newly formed polymer particles as the first product.Eventually, a fluidized bed consisting of desired polymer particlessupplants the start-up bed (or “seed bed”).

The fluidized bed process described above is well adapted for thepreparation of polyethylene from ethylene but other monomers (i.e.comonomers) may also be employed. Monomers and comonomers includeethylene and C₃₋₁₂ alpha olefins respectively, where C₃₋₁₂ alpha olefinsare unsubstituted or substituted by up to two C₁₋₆ alkyl radicals, C₈₋₁₂vinyl aromatic monomers which are unsubstituted or substituted by up totwo substituents selected from the group consisting of C₁₋₄ alkylradicals, C₄₋₁₂ straight chained or cyclic diolefins which areunsubstituted or substituted by a C₁₋₄ alkyl radical. Illustrativenon-limiting examples of such alpha-olefins are one or more ofpropylene, 1-butene, 1-pentene, 1-hexene, 1-octene, and 1-decene,styrene, alpha methyl styrene, p-tert-butyl styrene, and theconstrained-ring cyclic olefins such as cyclobutene, cyclopentene,dicyclopentadiene norbornene, alkyl-substituted norbornenes,alkenyl-substituted norbornenes and the like (e.g.5-methylene-2-norbornene and 5-ethylidene-2-norbornene,bicyclo-(2,2,1)-hepta-2,5-diene).

In one embodiment, the disclosure is directed toward a polymerizationprocess involving the polymerization of ethylene with one or more ofcomonomer(s) including linear or branched comonomer(s) having from 3 to30 carbon atoms, or from 3-12 carbon atoms, or from 3 to 8 carbon atoms.

In embodiments of the disclosure, the comonomer is an alpha-olefinhaving from 3 to 15 carbon atoms, or from 4 to 12 carbon atoms, or from4 to 10 carbon atoms, or from 3 to 8 carbon atoms.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, ethylene comprises at least 75 wt %of the total weight of monomer (i.e. ethylene) and comonomer (i.e. alphaolefin) that is fed to a polymerization reactor.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, ethylene comprises at least 85 wt %of the total weight of monomer (i.e. ethylene) and comonomer (i.e. alphaolefin) that is fed to a polymerization reactor.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, ethylene is polymerized with atleast two different comonomers to form a terpolymer.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the comonomer is an alpha-olefinselected from the group comprising 1-butene, 1-pentene, 1-hexene, and1-octene.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the comonomer is an alpha-olefinselected from the group comprising 1-butene, 1-hexene, and 1-octene.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the comonomer is 1-hexene.

The Ethylene Copolymer

In the present disclosure, the term “ethylene copolymer” is usedinterchangeably with the term “polyethylene copolymer” and each connotea polymer consisting of polymerized ethylene units and at least one typeof polymerized alpha olefin.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer compositionsare copolymers of ethylene and an alpha olefin having from 3 to 8 carbonatoms.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer compositionsare copolymers of ethylene and an alpha olefin selected from 1-butene,1-hexene and 1-octene.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer compositionsare copolymers of ethylene and 1-hexene.

In embodiments of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer compositionwill comprise at least about 75 weight % of ethylene units, or at leastabout 80 wt % of ethylene units, or at least about 85 wt % of ethyleneunits with the balance being an alpha-olefin unit, based on the weightof the ethylene copolymer composition.

The short chain branching (SCB) in an ethylene copolymer is thebranching due to the presence of alpha-olefin comonomer in the ethylenecopolymer and will for example have two carbon atoms for a 1-butenecomonomer, or four carbon atoms for a 1-hexene comonomer, or six carbonatoms for a 1-octene comonomer, etc. Generally, the short chainbranching is quantified per 1000 carbon atoms (i.e. SCB/1000Cs) in anethylene copolymer chain using methods such as for example by ¹³C NMR,or FTIR or GPC-FTIR methods.

In embodiments of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have adensity of from 0.910 g/cm³ to 0.936 g/cm³ including narrower rangeswithin this range, such as for example, from 0.912 g/cm³ to 0.936 g/cm³,or from 0.910 g/cm³ to 0.934 g/cm³, or from 0.912 g/cm³ to 0.934 g/cm³,or from 0.910 g/cm³ to 0.932 g/cm³, or from 0.910 g/cm³ to 0.930 g/cm³,or from 0.910 g/cm³ to 0.929 g/cm³, or from 0.912 g/cm³ to 0.929 g/cm³,or from 0.910 g/cm³ to 0.927 g/cm³, or from 0.910 g/cm³ to 0.925 g/cm³,or from 0.912 g/cm³ to 0.925 g/cm³, or from 0.914 g/cm³ to 0.925 g/cm³,or from 0.914 g/cm³ to 0.923 g/cm³, or from 0.914 g/cm³ to 0.921 g/cm³,or from 0.914 g/cm³ to 0.919 g/cm³, or from 0.914 g/cm³ to 0.936 g/cm³,or from 0.914 g/cm³ to 0.934 g/cm³, or from 0.914 g/cm³ to 0.932 g/cm³,or from 0.914 g/cm³ to 0.930 g/cm³, or from 0.914 g/cm³ to 0.929 g/cm³.

In embodiments of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have amelt index (I₂) of from about 0.1 to about 5.0 g/10 min, or from about0.1 to about 4.5 g/10 min, or from about 0.1 to about 4.0 g/10 min, orfrom about 0.2 to about 5.0 g/10 min, or from about 0.3 to about 5.0g/10 min, or from about 0.4 to about 5.0 g/10 min, or from about 0.5 toabout 5.0 g/10 min, or from about 0.5 to about 4.5 g/10 min, or fromabout 0.5 to about 4.0 g/10 min, or from about 0.5 to about 3.5 g/10min, or from about 0.5 to about 3.0 g/10 min, or from about 0.1 to about2.5 g/10 min, or from about 0.1 to about 2.0 g/10 min, or from about 0.1to about 1.5 g/10 min, or from about 0.1 to about 1.0 g/10 min, or fromabout 0.2 to about 3.0 g/10 min, or from about 0.2 to about 2.5 g/10min, or from about 0.2 to about 2.0 g/10 min.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have amelt flow ratio (the MFR=I₂₁/I₂) of from about 18 to about 36, or fromabout 18 to about 34, or from about 20 to about 32, or from about 20 toabout 30, or from about 20 to about 28, or from about 22 to about 30, orfrom about 22 to about 28, or from about 21 to about 29, or from about22 to about 29, or from about 23 to about 29, or from about 23 to about28, or from about 23 to about 27, or from about 22 to about 27, or fromabout 24 to about 27.

The ethylene copolymer of the present disclosure may have a unimodal,broad unimodal, bimodal, or multimodal profile in a gel permeationchromatography (GPC) curve generated according to the method of ASTMD6474-99. The term “unimodal” is herein defined to mean there will beonly one significant peak or maximum evident in the GPC-curve. Aunimodal profile includes a broad unimodal profile. By the term“bimodal” it is meant that in addition to a first peak, there will be asecondary peak or shoulder which represents a higher or lower molecularweight component (Le. the molecular weight distribution, can be said tohave two maxima in a molecular weight distribution curve).Alternatively, the term “bimodal” connotes the presence of two maxima ina molecular weight distribution curve generated according to the methodof ASTM D6474-99. The term “multi-modal” denotes the presence of two ormore maxima in a molecular weight distribution curve generated accordingto the method of ASTM D6474-99.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have aunimodal profile in a gel permeation chromatography (GPC) curvegenerated according to the method of ASTM D6474-99.

In embodiments of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will exhibit aweight average molecular weight (Mw) as determined by gel permeationchromatography (GPC) of from about 25,000 to about 250,000, includingnarrower ranges within this range, such as for example, from about30,000 to about 225,000, or from about 50,000 to about 200,000, or fromabout 50,000 to about 175,000, or from about 75,000 to about 150,000, orfrom about 80,000 to about 130,000.

In embodiments of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will exhibit anumber average molecular weight (Mn) as determined by gel permeationchromatography (GPC) of from about 5,000 to about 100,000 includingnarrower ranges within this range, such as for example from about 7,500to about 100,000, or from about 7,500 to about 75,000, or from about7,500 to about 50,000, or from about 10,000 to about 100,000, or fromabout 10,000 to about 75,000, or from about 10,000 to about 50,000.

In embodiments of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will exhibit aZ-average molecular weight (Mz) as determined by gel permeationchromatography (GPC) of from about 50,000 to about 1,000,000 includingnarrower ranges within this range, such as for example from about 75,000to about 750,000, or from about 100,000 to about 500,000, or from about100,000 to about 400,000, or from about 125,000 to about 375,000, orfrom about 150,000 to about 350,000, or from about 175,000 to about375,000, or from about 175,000 to about 400,000, or from about 200,000to about 400,000 or from about 225,000 to about 375,000.

In embodiments of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have amolecular weight distribution (M_(w)/M_(n)) as determined by gelpermeation chromatography (GPC) of from about 2.0 to about 6.0,including narrower ranges within this range, such as for example, fromabout 2.2 to about 5.5, or from about 2.2 to about 5.0, or from about2.2 to about 4.5, or from about 2.2 to about 4.0, or from about 2.4 toabout 5.5, or from about 2.4 to about 5.0, or from about 2.4 to about4.5, or from about 2.4 to about 4.0, or from about 2.4 to about 3.75, orfrom about 2.4 to about 3.5, or from about 2.5 to about 5.0, or fromabout 2.5 to about 4.5, or from about 2.5 to about 4.0, or from about2.5 to about 3.75, or from about 2.5 to about 3.5.

In embodiments of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have a Zaverage molecular weight distribution (Mz/Mw) as determined by gelpermeation chromatography (GPC) of from about 1.6 to about 4.5,including narrower ranges within this range, such as for example, fromabout 1.8 to about 4.0, or from about 2.0 to about 4.0, or from about1.8 to about 3.75, or from about 2.0 to about 3.75, or from about 1.8 toabout 3.5, or from about 2.0 to about 3.5, or from about 1.8 to about3.25, or from about 2.0 to about 3.25, or from about 1.8 to about 3.0,or from about 2.0 to about 3.0, or from about 1.8 to about 2.75, or fromabout 2.0 to about 2.75.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have aso called “normal” (i.e. negative) comonomer distribution profile asmeasured using GPC-FTIR.

In the present disclosure, a “normal comonomer distribution” profilemeans that across the molecular weight range of the ethylene copolymer,comonomer contents for the various polymer fractions are notsubstantially uniform and that the comonomer incorporation decreases asmolecular weight increases; if the comonomer incorporation isapproximately constant with molecular weight, as measured usingGPC-FTIR, the comonomer distribution is described as “flat” or “uniform”and the comonomer contents for the various polymer fractions issubstantially uniform; the term “reverse comonomer distribution” is usedherein to mean, that across the molecular weight range of the ethylenecopolymer, comonomer contents for the various polymer fractions are notsubstantially uniform and the higher molecular weight fractions thereofhave proportionally higher comonomer contents (i.e. if the comonomerincorporation rises with molecular weight, the distribution is describedas “reverse”); finally, where the comonomer incorporation rises withincreasing molecular weight and then declines, the comonomerdistribution is still considered “reverse”, but may also be described as“partially reverse”.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have acomonomer distribution profile having a slope as determined by GPC-FTIRwhich is defined by: SCB/1000C at MW of 300,000−SCB/1000C at MW of30,000 where “−” is a minus sign, SCB/1000C is the comonomer contentdetermined as the number of short chain branches per thousand carbonsand MW is the corresponding molecular weight (i.e. the absolutemolecular weight) on a GPC or GPC-FTIR chromatograph.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have acommoner distribution profile having a slope, SCB/1000C at MW of300,000−SCB/1000C at MW of 30,000, which satisfies the following:

−7.5≤(SCB/1000C at MW of 300,000−SCB/1000C at MW of 30,000)≤−3.5.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have acommoner distribution profile having a slope, SCB/1000C at MW of300,000−SCB/1000C at MW of 30,000, which satisfies the following:

−7.0≤(SCB/1000C at MW of 300,000−SCB/1000C at MW of 30,000)≤−3.5.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have acommoner distribution profile having a slope, SCB/1000C at MW of300,000−SCB/1000C at MW of 30,000, which satisfies the following:

−7.0≤(SCB/1000C at MW of 300,000−SCB/1000C at MW of 30,000)≤−4.5.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have acommoner distribution profile having a slope, SCB/10000 at MW of300,000−SCB/10000 at MW of 30,000, which satisfies the following:

−7.0≤(SCB/10000 at MW of 300,000−SCB/1000C at MW of 30,000)≤−4.0.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have acommoner distribution profile having a slope, SCB/10000 at MW of300,000−SCB/1000C at MW of 30,000, which satisfies the following:

−7.5≤(SCB/10000 at MW of 300,000−SCB/1000C at MW of 30,000)≤−4.5.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have acommoner distribution profile having a slope, SCB/1000C at MW of300,000−SCB/10000 at MW of 30,000, which satisfies the following:

−7.5≤SCB/10000 at MW of 300,000−SCB/10000 at MW of 30,000)≤−4.0.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have acommoner distribution profile having a slope, SCB/10000 at MW of300,000−SCB/10000 at MW of 30,000, which satisfies the following:

−7.0≤(SCB/10000 at MW of 300,000−SCB/10000 at MW of 30,000)≤−5.0.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have acommoner distribution profile having a slope, SCB/10000 at MW of300,000−SCB/10000 at MW of 30,000, which satisfies the following:

−7.5≤(SCB/10000 at MW of 300,000−SCB/10000 at MW of 30,000)≤−5.0.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have acommoner distribution profile having a slope, SCB/10000 at MW of300,000−SCB/10000 at MW of 30,000, which satisfies the following:

−6.5≤SCB/10000 at MW of 300,000−SCB/10000 at MW of 30,000)≤−5.0.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have acommoner distribution profile having a slope, SCB/10000 at MW of300,000−SCB/10000 at MW of 30,000, which satisfies the following:

−6.5≤(SCB/10000 at MW of 300,000−SCB/10000 at MW of 30,000)≤−4.5.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have acommoner distribution profile having a slope, SCB/1000C at MW of300,000−SCB/1000C at MW of 30,000, which satisfies the following:

−6.5−(SCB/1000C at MW of 300,000−SCB/1000C at MW of 30,000)≤−4.0.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer has amultimodal TREF profile comprising at least two elution intensity maxima(or peaks).

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer has a bimodalTREF profile comprising two elution intensity maxima (or peaks).

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer has amultimodal TREF profile defined by at least two intensity maxima (orpeaks) occurring at elution temperatures Tp1, and Tp2, wherein Tp1 isbetween 80° C. to 90° C. and Tp2 is between 90° C. and 100° C.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer has amultimodal TREF profile defined by at least two intensity maxima (orpeaks) occurring at elution temperatures Tp1, and Tp2, wherein Tp1 isbetween 85° C. to 90° C. and Tp2 is between 90° C. and 100° C.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer has amultimodal TREF profile defined by at least two intensity maxima (orpeaks) occurring at elution temperatures Tp1, and Tp2, wherein Tp1 isbetween 85° C. to 95° C. and Tp2 is between 95° C. and 100° C.

In embodiments of the disclosure, less than 1 wt %, or less than 0.5 wt%, or less than 0.05 wt %, or 0 wt % of the ethylene copolymer willelute at a temperature of above 100° C. in a TREF analysis.

In embodiments of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have acomposition distribution breadth index CDBI₅₀, as determined bytemperature elution fractionation (TREF) of from about 15% to about 50%by weight, or from about 20% to about 45% by weight, or from about 20%to about 40% by weight, or from about 20% to about 35% by weight, orfrom about 22.5% to about 40% by weight, or from about 22.5% to about37.5%, or from about 22.5 to about 35% by weight.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer has acharacteristic composition distribution parameter, βT1 which satisfiesthe relationship: β_(Tp1)≤22750−400 (SCB/1000C−2.5×I₂), whereβTp1=(dMw_(T)/dT)|T=Tp1 and SCB/1000C is the number short chain branchesper 1000 carbons atoms. The β_(Tp1) is determined from crossfractionation chromatography (CFC) using the method described in theExamples section.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer has acharacteristic composition transition parameter, ϕ_(Tp1→Tp2) whichsatisfies the relationship: ϕ Tp1→Tp2≤4230−140[SCB/1000C+0.5×(I₂₁/I₂)−2×I₂], where ϕ Tp1→Tp2=(βTp2−βTp1) and SCB/1000Cis the number short chain branches per 1000 carbons atoms. Theϕ_(Tp1→Tp2) is determined from cross fractionation chromatography (CFC)using the method described in the Examples section.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer satisfies thefollowing relationship: 0.8≤(Mw_(Tp1)/Mw)≤1.8, where Mw_(Tp1)=weightaverage molecular weight of ethylene copolymer material eluting at Tp1and Mw is the weight average molecular weight of the entire ethylenecopolymer. The Mw_(Tp1) is determined from cross fractionationchromatography (CFC) using the method described in the Examples section.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer satisfies thefollowing relationship: 2.5≤[HD/(Tp2−Tp1)]≤5.5, where HD is amount (inweight %) of “high density” ethylene copolymer, in weight percent,eluting at ≥94° C. in a TREF analysis, and where Tp1 and Tp2 correspondto the intensity maxima (or peaks) occurring at elution temperaturesbelow 90° C. “Tp1”, and above 90° C. “Tp2”, respectively, in a TREFanalysis.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer has a hexanesextractables content of less than about 4.0 wt %, or less than about 3.5wt %, or less than about 3.0 wt %, or less than about 2.5 wt %, or lessthan about 2.0 wt %, or less than about 1.75 wt %, or less than about1.5 wt %, or less than about 1.0 wt %.

In embodiments of the disclosure, the ethylene copolymer will have abulk density of at great than about 25 lbs/ft³, or greater than about 26lbs/ft³, or greater than about 27 lbs/ft³, or greater than about 28lbs/ft³.

Film Production

The extrusion-blown film process is a well-known process for thepreparation of plastic film. The process employs an extruder whichheats, melts and conveys the molten plastic and forces it through anannular die. Typical extrusion temperatures are from 330 to 500° F.,especially 350 to 460° F.

In an extrusion-blown film process an ethylene copolymer film is drawnfrom the die and formed into a tube shape and eventually passed througha pair of draw or nip rollers. Internal compressed air is thenintroduced from a mandrel causing the tube to increase in diameterforming a “bubble” of the desired size. Thus, the blown film isstretched in two directions, namely in the axial direction (by the useof forced air which “blows out” the diameter of the bubble) and in thelengthwise direction of the bubble (by the action of a winding elementwhich pulls the bubble through the machinery). External air is alsointroduced around the bubble circumference to cool the melt as it exitsthe die. Film width is varied by introducing more or less internal airinto the bubble thus increasing or decreasing the bubble size. Filmthickness is controlled primarily by increasing or decreasing the speedof the draw roll or nip roll to control the draw-down rate.

The bubble is then collapsed immediately after passing through the drawor nip rolls. The cooled film can then be processed further by cuttingor sealing to produce a variety of consumer products. While not wishingto be bound by theory, it is generally believed by those skilled in theart of manufacturing blown films that the physical properties of thefinished films are influenced by both the molecular structure of theethylene copolymer and by the processing conditions. For example, theprocessing conditions are thought to influence the degree of molecularorientation (in both the machine direction and the axial or crossdirection).

A balance of “machine direction” (“MD”) and “transverse direction”(“TD”-which is perpendicular to MD) molecular orientation is generallyconsidered desirable for films (for example, Dart Impact strength,Machine Direction and Transverse Direction tear properties may beaffected).

Thus, it is recognized that these stretching forces on the “bubble” canaffect the physical properties of the finished film. In particular, itis known that the “blow up ratio” (i.e. the ratio of the diameter of theblown bubble to the diameter of the annular die) can have a significanteffect upon the dart impact strength and tear strength of the finishedfilm.

The above description relates to the preparation of monolayer films.

Multilayer films may be prepared by 1) a “co-extrusion” process thatallows more than one stream of molten polymer to be introduced to anannular die resulting in a multi-layered film membrane or 2) alamination process in which film layers are laminated together.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the films of this disclosure areprepared using the above described blown film process.

An alternative process is the so-called cast film process, wherein theethylene copolymer is melted in an extruder, then forced through alinear slit die, thereby “casting” a thin flat film. The extrusiontemperature for cast film is typically somewhat hotter than that used inthe blown film process (with typically operating temperatures of from450 to 550° F.). In general, cast film is cooled (quenched) more rapidlythan blown film.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the films of this disclosure areprepared using a cast film process.

Additives

The ethylene copolymer composition used in the current disclosure tomake films, may also contain additives, such as for example, primaryantioxidants (such as hindered phenols, including vitamin E); secondaryantioxidants (especially phosphites and phosphonites); nucleatingagents, plasticizers or polymer processing aids PPAs (e.g.fluoroelastomer and/or polyethylene glycol bound process aid), acidscavengers, stabilizers, anticorrosion agents, blowing agents, otherultraviolet light absorbers such as chain-breaking antioxidants, etc.,quenchers, antistatic agents, slip agents, anti-blocking agent,pigments, dyes and fillers and cure agents such as peroxide.

These and other common additives in the polyolefin industry may bepresent in ethylene copolymer compositions from 0.01 to 50 wt % in oneembodiment, and from 0.1 to 20 wt % in another embodiment, and from 1 to5 wt % in yet another embodiment, wherein a desirable range may compriseany combination of any upper wt % limit with any lower wt % limit.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, antioxidants and stabilizers such asorganic phosphites and phenolic antioxidants may be present in theethylene copolymer compositions from 0.001 to 5 wt % in one embodiment,and from 0.01 to 0.8 wt % in another embodiment, and from 0.02 to 0.5 wt% in yet another embodiment. Non-limiting examples of organic phosphitesthat are suitable are tris(2,4-di-tert-butylphenyl)phosphite (IRGAFOS168) and tris (nonyl phenyl) phosphite (WESTON 399). Non-limitingexamples of phenolic antioxidants include octadecyl 3,5di-t-butyl-4-hydroxyhydrocinnamate (IRGANOX 1076) and pentaerythrityltetrakis(3,5-di-tert-butyl-4-hydroxyphenyl) propionate (IRGANOX 1010);and 1,3,5-Tri(3,5-di-tert-butyl-4-hydroxybenzyl-isocyanurate (IRGANOX3114).

Fillers may be present in the ethylene copolymer composition from 0.1 to50 wt % in one embodiment, and from 0.1 to 25 wt % of the composition inanother embodiment, and from 0.2 to 10 wt % in yet another embodiment.Fillers include but are not limited to titanium dioxide, siliconcarbide, silica (and other oxides of silica, precipitated or not),antimony oxide, lead carbonate, zinc white, lithopone, zircon, corundum,spinel, apatite, Barytes powder, barium sulfate, magnesiter, carbonblack, dolomite, calcium carbonate, talc and hydrotalcite compounds ofthe ions Mg, Ca, or Zn with Al, Cr or Fe and CO3 and/or HPO4, hydratedor not; quartz powder, hydrochloric magnesium carbonate, glass fibers,clays, alumina, and other metal oxides and carbonates, metal hydroxides,chrome, phosphorous and brominated flame retardants, antimony trioxide,silica, silicone, and blends thereof. These fillers may include anyother fillers and porous fillers and supports which are known in theart.

Fatty acid salts may also be present in the ethylene copolymercompositions. Such salts may be present from 0.001 to 2 wt % of theethylene copolymer composition in one embodiment, and from 0.01 to 1 wt% in another embodiment. Examples of fatty acid metal salts includelauric acid, stearic acid, succinic acid, stearyl lactic acid, lacticacid, phthalic acid, benzoic acid, hydroxystearic acid, ricinoleic acid,naphthenic acid, oleic acid, palmitic acid, and erucic acid, suitablemetals including Li, Na, Mg, Ca, Sr, Ba, Zn, Cd, Al, Sn, Pb and soforth. Desirable fatty acid salts are selected from magnesium stearate,calcium stearate, sodium stearate, zinc stearate, calcium oleate, zincoleate, and magnesium oleate.

With respect to the physical process of producing the blend of theethylene copolymer and one or more additives, sufficient mixing shouldtake place to assure that a uniform blend will be produced prior toconversion into a finished product. The ethylene copolymer can be in anyphysical form when used to blend with the one or more additives. In oneembodiment, reactor granules, defined as the granules of polymer thatare isolated from the polymerization reactor, are used to blend with theadditives. The reactor granules have an average diameter of from 100 μmto 2 mm, and from 200 μm to 1.5 mm in another embodiment. Alternately,the ethylene copolymer is in the form of pellets, such as, for example,having an average diameter of from 1 mm to 6 mm that are formed frommelt extrusion of the reactor granules.

One method of blending the additives with the ethylene copolymer is tocontact the components in a tumbler or other physical blending means,the copolymer being in the form of reactor granules. This can then befollowed, if desired, by melt blending in an extruder. Another method ofblending the components is to melt blend the ethylene copolymer pelletswith the additives directly in an extruder, or any other melt blendingmeans.

Film Properties.

The film, or film layer of the present disclosure is made from theethylene copolymers defined as above. Generally, an additive asdescribed above is mixed with the ethylene copolymer prior to filmproduction.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a 0.8 mil blown film willhave a dart impact of ≥300 g/mil when the film is made at a blow upratio (BUR) of 2:1 using an 85 mil die gap. In an embodiment of thepresent disclosure, a 0.8 mil blown film will have a dart impact of ≥325g/mil when the film is made at a blow up ratio (BUR) of 2:1 using an 85mil die gap. In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a 0.8 mil blownfilm will have a dart impact of ≥350 g/mil when the film is made at ablow up ratio (BUR) of 2:1 using an 85 mil die gap. In an embodiment ofthe present disclosure, a 0.8 mil blown film will have a dart impact of≥375 g/mil when the film is made at a blow up ratio (BUR) of 2:1 usingan 85 mil die gap.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a 0.8 mil blown film willhave a machine direction (MD) tear of ≥375 g/mil when the film is madeat a blow up ratio (BUR) of 2:1 using an 85 mil die gap. In anembodiment of the present disclosure, a 0.8 mil blown film will have amachine direction (MD) tear of ≥400 g/mil when the film is made at ablow up ratio (BUR) of 2:1 using an 85 mil die gap. In an embodiment ofthe present disclosure, a 0.8 mil blown film will have a machinedirection (MD) tear of ≥425 g/mil when the film is made at a blow upratio (BUR) of 2:1 using an 85 mil die gap.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a 0.8 mil blown film willhave a transverse direction (TD) tear of ≥700 g/mil when the film ismade at a blow up ratio (BUR) of 2:1 using an 85 mil die gap. In anembodiment of the present disclosure, a 0.8 mil blown film will have atransverse direction (TD) tear of ≥725 g/mil when the film is made at ablow up ratio (BUR) of 2:1 using an 85 mil die gap. In an embodiment ofthe present disclosure, a 0.8 mil blown film will have a transversedirection (TD) tear of ≥750 g/mil when the film is made at a blow upratio (BUR) of 2:1 using an 85 mm die gap. In an embodiment of thepresent disclosure, a 0.8 mil blown film will have a transversedirection (TD) tear of ≥775 g/mil when the film is made at a blow upratio (BUR) of 2:1 using an 85 mil die gap. In an embodiment of thepresent disclosure, a 0.8 mil blown film will have a transversedirection (TD) tear of ≥800 g/mil when the film is made at a blow upratio (BUR) of 2:1 using an 85 mil die gap. In an embodiment of thepresent disclosure, a 0.8 mil blown film will have a transversedirection (TD) tear of ≥825 g/mil when the film is made at a blow upratio (BUR) of 2:1 using an 85 mil die gap. In an embodiment of thepresent disclosure, a 0.8 mil blown film will have a transversedirection (TD) tear of ≥850 g/mil when the film is made at a blow upratio (BUR) of 2:1 using an 85 mil die gap. In an embodiment of thepresent disclosure, a 0.8 mil blown film will have a transversedirection (TD) tear of ≥875 g/mil when the film is made at a blow upratio (BUR) of 2:1 using an 85 mil die gap.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a 0.8 mil blown film willhave a machine direction (MD) secant modulus at 1% strain of 160 MPawhen the film is made at a blow up ratio (BUR) of 2:1 using an 85 mildie gap. In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a 0.8 mil blownfilm will have a machine direction (MD) secant modulus at 1% strain of≥170 MPa when the film is made at a blow up ratio (BUR) of 2:1 using an85 mil die gap. In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a 0.8 milblown film will have a machine direction (MD) secant modulus at 1%strain of ≥180 MPa when the film is made at a blow up ratio (BUR) of 2:1using an 85 mil die gap. In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a0.8 mil blown film will have a machine direction (MD) secant modulus at1% strain of ≥190 MPa when the film is made at a blow up ratio (BUR) of2:1 using an 85 mil die gap.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a 0.8 mil blown film willhave a transverse direction (TD) secant modulus at 1% strain of ≥160 MPawhen the film is made at a blow up ratio (BUR) of 2:1 using an 85 mildie gap. In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a 0.8 mil blownfilm will have a transverse direction (TD) secant modulus at 1% strainof ≥170 MPa when the film is made at a blow up ratio (BUR) of 2:1 usingan 85 mil die gap. In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a 0.8 milblown film will have a transverse direction (TD) secant modulus at 1%strain of ≥180 MPa when the film is made at a blow up ratio (BUR) of 2:1using an 85 mil die gap. In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a0.8 mil blown film will have a transverse direction (TD) secant modulusat 1% strain of ≥190 MPa when the film is made at a blow up ratio (BUR)of 2:1 using an 85 mil die gap.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, a 0.8 mil blown film made at a blowup ratio (BUR) of 2:1 using an 85 mil die gap will have a haze of lessthan about 30%, or less than about 28%, or less than about 26%, or lessthan about 24%, or less than about 22%, or less than about 20%, or lessthan about 18%.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, a 0.8 mil blown film made at a blowup ratio (BUR) of 2:1 using an 85 mil die gap film will have a gloss at45° of at least about 30, or at least about 32, or at least about 34, orat least about 36, or at least about 38, or at least about 40.

The film or film layer may, by way of non-limiting example only, have atotal thickness ranging from 0.5 mils to 4 mils (note: 1 mil=0.0254 mm),which will depend on for example the die gap employed during filmcasting or film blowing.

The above description applies to monolayer films. However, the film ofthe current disclosure may be used in a multilayer film. Multilayerfilms can be made using a co-extrusion process or a lamination process.In co-extrusion, a plurality of molten polymer streams are fed to anannular die (or flat cast) resulting in a multi-layered film on cooling.In lamination, a plurality of films are bonded together using, forexample, adhesives, joining with heat and pressure and the like. Amultilayer film structure may, for example, contain tie layers and/orsealant layers.

The film of the current disclosure may be a skin layer or a core layerand can be used in at least one or a plurality of layers in a multilayerfilm. The term “core” or the phrase “core layer”, refers to any internalfilm layer in a multilayer film. The phrase “skin layer” refers to anoutermost layer of a multilayer film (for example, as used in theproduction of produce packaging). The phrase “sealant layer” refers to afilm that is involved in the sealing of the film to itself or to anotherlayer in a multilayer film. A “tie layer” refers to any internal layerthat adheres two layers to one another.

By way of example only, the thickness of the multilayer films can befrom about 0.5 mil to about 10 mil total thickness.

The films can be used for bags, liner, wrap, shrink film, agriculturalfilm, garbage bags and shopping bags. The films can be produced by blowextrusion, cast extrusion, co-extrusion and be incorporated also inlaminated structures.

EXAMPLES

General

All reactions involving air and or moisture sensitive compounds wereconducted under nitrogen using standard Schlenk and cannula techniques,or in a glovebox. Reaction solvents were purified either using thesystem described by Pangborn et. al. in Organometallics 1996, v15, p.1518 or used directly after being stored over activated 4 A molecularsieves.

Melt index, I₂, in g/10 min was determined on a Tinius Olsen Plastomer(Model MP993) in accordance with ASTM D1238 Procedure A (ManualOperation) at 190° C. with a 2.16 kilogram weight. High load melt index,I₂₁, in g/10 min was determined in accordance with ASTM D1238 ProcedureA at 190° C. with a 21.6 kilogram weight. Melt flow ratio (alsosometimes called melt index ratio) is I₂₁/I₂.

Polymer density was determined in grams per cubic centimeter (g/cm³)according to ASTM D792.

Molecular weight information (M_(w), M_(n) and M_(z) in g/mol) andmolecular weight distribution (M_(w)/M_(n)), and z-average molecularweight distribution (M_(z)/M_(w)) were analyzed by gel permeationchromatography (GPC), using an instrument sold under the trade name“Waters 150c”, with 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene as the mobile phase at 140°C. The samples were prepared by dissolving the polymer in this solventand were run without filtration. Molecular weights are expressed aspolyethylene equivalents with a relative standard deviation of 2.9% forthe number average molecular weight (“Mn”) and 5.0% for the weightaverage molecular weight (“Mw”). Polymer sample solutions (1 to 2 mg/mL)were prepared by heating the polymer in 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene (TCB) androtating on a wheel for 4 hours at 150° C. in an oven. The antioxidant2,6-di-tert-butyl-4-methylphenol (BHT) was added to the mixture in orderto stabilize the polymer against oxidative degradation. The BHTconcentration was 250 ppm. Sample solutions were chromatographed at 140°C. on a PL 220 high-temperature chromatography unit equipped with fourSHODEX columns (HT803, HT804, HT805 and HT806) using TCB as the mobilephase with a flow rate of 1.0 mL/minute, with a differential refractiveindex (DRI) as the concentration detector. BHT was added to the mobilephase at a concentration of 250 ppm to protect the columns fromoxidative degradation. The sample injection volume was 200 mL. The rawdata were processed with CIRRUS GPC software. The columns werecalibrated with narrow distribution polystyrene standards. Thepolystyrene molecular weights were converted to polyethylene molecularweights using the Mark-Houwink equation, as described in the ASTMstandard test method D6474.

The branch frequency of copolymer samples (i.e. the short chainbranching, SCB per 1000 carbons) and the C6 comonomer content (in wt %)was determined by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) as perthe ASTM D6645-01 method. A Thermo-Nicolet 750 Magna-IRSpectrophotometer equipped with OMNIC version 7.2a software was used forthe measurements.

The determination of branch frequency as a function of molecular weight(and hence the comonomer distribution) was carried out using hightemperature Gel Permeation Chromatography (GPC) and FT-IR of the eluent.Polyethylene standards with a known branch content, polystyrene andhydrocarbons with a known molecular weight were used for calibration.

Hexane extractables using compression molded plaques were determinedaccording to ASTM D5227.

Polymer bulk density (reported as lb/ft³) was measured in generalaccordance with ASTM D1895-96 (2003).

To determine the composition distribution breadth index CDBI₅₀ (which isalso designated CDBI(50) in the present disclosure so that CDBI₅₀ andCDBI(50) are used interchangeably), a solubility distribution curve isfirst generated for the copolymer. This is accomplished using dataacquired from the TREF technique (see below). This solubilitydistribution curve is a plot of the weight fraction of the copolymerthat is solubilized as a function of temperature. This is converted to acumulative distribution curve of weight fraction versus comonomercontent, from which the CDBl₅₀ is determined by establishing the weightpercentage of a copolymer sample that has a comonomer content within 50%of the median comonomer content on each side of the median (see WO93/03093 for the definition of CDBI₅₀). The weight percentage ofcopolymer eluting at ≥94° C., is determined by calculating the areaunder the TREF curve at an elution temperature of ≥94° C. The weightpercent of copolymer eluting below at above 100° C. was determinedsimilarly. For the purpose of simplifying the correlation of compositionwith elution temperature, all fractions are assumed to have a Mn≥15,000,where Mn is the number average molecular weight of the fraction. Any lowweight fractions present generally represent a trivial portion of thepolymer. The remainder of this description and the appended claimsmaintain this convention of assuming all fractions have Mn≥15,000 in theCDBI₅₀ measurement.

The specific temperature rising elution fractionation (TREF) method usedherein was as follows. Homogeneous polymer samples (pelletized, 50 to150 mg) were introduced into the reactor vessel of acrystallization-TREF unit (Polymer Char™). The reactor vessel was filledwith 20 to 40 mL 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene (TCB), and heated to the desireddissolution temperature (e.g. 150° C.) for 1 to 3 hours. The solution(0.5 to 1.5 mL) was then loaded into the TREF column filled withstainless steel beads. After equilibration at a given stabilizationtemperature (e.g. 110° C.) for 30 to 45 minutes, the polymer solutionwas allowed to crystallize with a temperature drop from thestabilization temperature to 30° C. (0.1 or 0.2° C./minute). Afterequilibrating at 30° C. for 30 minutes, the crystallized sample waseluted with TCB (0.5 or 0.75 mL/minute) with a temperature ramp from 30°C. to the stabilization temperature (0.25 or 1.0° C./minute). The TREFcolumn was cleaned at the end of the run for 30 minutes at thedissolution temperature. The data were processed using Polymer Charsoftware, Excel spreadsheet and TREF software developed in-house.

The TREF procedures described above are well known to persons skilled inthe art and can be used to determine the temperatures or temperatureranges where elution intensity maxima (elution peaks) occur.

For cross fractionation chromatography (CFC), a polymer sample (100 to200 mg) was introduced into a sample dissolution vessel in the PolymerChar crystal-TREF unit. The sample dissolution vessel was filled with 25to 35 ml 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene (TCB) containing 250 ppm antioxidant2,6-di-tert-butyl-4-methylphenol (BHT) and heated to the desireddissolution temperature (e.g. 140° C.) for 2 to 3 hours. The polymersolution (1.0 ml) was then loaded into the TREF column filled withstainless steel beads and equilibrated at a given stabilizationtemperature (e.g. 110° C.) for 20 to 45 minutes. The polymer solutionwas allowed to crystallize by dropping from the stabilizationtemperature to 30° C. at 0.2° C./minute. After equilibrating at 30° C.for 90 minutes, the crystallized sample was eluted with TCB from 30 to110° C., where 5 to 20 fractions were collected for the polymercharacterization. Each eluted fraction was heated to a specificdissolution temperature, equilibrated for at least 50 minutes andsubsequently introduced directly to a GPC system through a heatedtransfer line for testing. All above steps, including the sampledissolution, sample solution loading into TREF column, crystallizationand elution, were programmed and controlled using the Polymer Char TREFsoftware with the step-elution capability.

The polymer fractions were chromatographed at 140° C. on a PL 220high-temperature chromatography unit equipped with either four SHODEXcolumns (HT803, HT804, HT805 and HT806), or four PL Mixed ALS or BLScolumns, and with a differential refractive index (DRI) as theconcentration detector. TCB was the mobile phase with a flow rate of 1.0mL/minute, BHT was added to the mobile phase at a concentration of 250ppm to protect SEC columns and polymer from oxidative degradation. TheSEC columns were calibrated with narrow distribution polystyrenestandards. The polystyrene molecular weights were converted topolyethylene molecular weights using the Mark-Houwink equation, asdescribed in the ASTM D6474. The data were acquired and processed withCIRRUS GPC software and EXCEL spreadsheet.

The melting points including a peak melting point (T_(m)) and thepercent crystallinity of the copolymers are determined by using a TAInstrument DSC Q1000 Thermal Analyzer at 10° C./min. In a DSCmeasurement, a heating-cooling-heating cycle from room temperature to200° C. or vice versa is applied to the polymers to minimize thethermo-mechanical history associated with them. The melting point andpercent of crystallinity are determined by the primary peak temperatureand the total area under the DSC curve respectively from the secondheating data. The peak melting temperature Tm is the higher temperaturepeak, when two peaks are present in a bimodal DSC profile (typicallyalso having the greatest peak height).

Dynamic Mechanical Analysis (DMA). Rheological measurements (e.g.small-strain (10%) oscillatory shear measurements) were carried out on aDiscovery Hybrid Rheometer DHR-3 rotational rheometer with 25 mmdiameter cone and plate in a frequency sweep mode under full nitrogenblanketing. The polymer samples are appropriately stabilized with theanti-oxidant additives and then inserted into the test fixture for atleast one minute preheating to ensure the normal force decreasing backto zero. All DMA experiments are conducted at 10% strain, 0.02 to 126rad/s and 190° C. TRIOS and Orchestrator Software are used to determinethe viscoelastic parameters including the storage modulus (G′), lossmodulus (G″), phase angle (δ), complex modulus (G*) and complexviscosity (η*).

The Shear Thinning Index (SHI) was determined according to the methodprovided in U.S. Pat. Appl. No. 2011/0212315: the SHI is defined asSHI(ω)=η*(ω)/η0 for any given frequency (ω) for dynamic viscositymeasurement, wherein η0 is zero shear viscosity @190° C. determined viathe empiric Cox-Merz-rule. η* is the complex viscosity @190° C.determinable upon dynamic (sinusoidal) shearing or deformation of acopolymer as determined on a Discovery Hybrid Rheometer DHR-3 rotationalrheometer using cone and plate geometry. According to the Cox-Merz-Rule,when the frequency (ω) is expressed in Radiant units, at low shearrates, the numerical value of η* is equal to that of conventional,intrinsic viscosity based on low shear capillary measurements. Theskilled person in the field of rheology is well versed with determiningη0 in this way.

The films of the current examples were made on a blown film linemanufactured by Battenfeld Gloucester Engineering Company of Gloucester,Mass. using a die diameter of 4 inches, and a die gap of 85 mil. Thisblown film line has a standard output of more than 100 pounds per hourand is equipped with a 50 horsepower motor. Screw speed was 25 to 50RPM. The extruder screw has a 2.5 mil diameter and a length/diameter(L/D) ratio of 24/1. Melt Temperature and Frost Line Height (FLH) are420 to 430° F. and 14 inches respectively. 1000 ppm of calcium strearatemasterbatch was added to the resins to improve the film appearance whilethe films were made. The blown film bubble is air cooled. Typical blowup ratio (BUR) for blown films prepared on this line are from 1.5/1 to4/1. An annular die having a gap of 85 mil was used for theseexperiments.

The haze (%) was measured in accordance with the procedures specified inASTM D 1003-07, using a BYK-Gardner Haze Meter (Model Haze-gard plus).Dart impact strength was measured on a dart impact tester (ModelD2085AB/P) made by Kayeness Inc. in accordance with ASTM D-1709-04(method A).

Machine (MD) and transverse (TD) direction Elmendorf tear strengths weremeasured on a ProTear™ Tear Tester made by Thwing-Albert Instrument Co.in accordance with ASTM D-1922.

Puncture resistance was measured on a MTS Systems Universal Tester(Model SMT(HIGH)-500N-192) in accordance with ASTM D-5748

TEF & Lube puncture resistance was measured on a MTS Systems UniversalTester (Model SMT(HIGH)-500N-192) using a ¾″ diameter Teflon-coatedround probe at a crosshead speed of 20 in/min. This test measures theenergy required to puncture polyethylene films. A specimen of 4¼″ wideand lay flat length was cut from a blown film sample in the transversedirection and then clamped on the tester. About 1 cm³ of lube wasapplied to the centre of the film and the TEFLON-coated probe was set at0.25 inch above the specimen for the testing. MTS Testworks software wasused for the operation of the tester and the data acquisition andprocessing.

Secant modulus and tensile properties were measured on the Type IVtensile specimens using an Instron Robotic Universal Tester with a gripseparation of 2.0 inches in a single test. Testmaster2™ and Bluehill™software were used for the operation of the robotic system and testframe respectively for the testing. The secant modulus was first testedat a crosshead speed of 1.0 in/min up to 5.0% strain and then followedby a tensile test at 20 in/min until the specimen breaks in compliantwith ASTM D638. The MD or TD secant modulus was determined from aninitial slope of the stress-strain curve from an origin to 1% strain.

Re-block test of film was carried out at 60° C. on a Kayeness BlockingTester (Model D-9046). A specimen was cut from a film sample across thelay flat or in the transverse direction and placed under the 5″×8″plates with the weight equivalent to 1 psi in an oven at 60° C. for 24hours. Then the film sample was conditioned at 23° C. under the weightedplates for at least 16 hours prior to testing. The film sample wasclamped to the platens of the tester and tested at a loading rate of 90g/min until the separation of the two film layers reached ¾ inch.

The re-block data is reported as the blocking load at a desired filmseparation and temperature.

Gloss was measured on a BYK-Gardner 45° Micro-Gloss unit in accordancewith ASTM D2457-03.

Ziegler-Natta Catalyst Synthesis

Silica (Sylopol 2408™ which is commercially available from GraceDavison) was dried at 150° C. for a day in an oven and then transferredinto a cylindrical tube. The tube was heated to 200° C. under a flow ofair for a further 2 hours. After this time, the air was turned off,nitrogen was slowly passed over the silica and the temperature wasincreased to 600° C. for 6 hours. The oven was then turned off and thesilica was allowed to cool to room temperature. The silica was thentransferred into a glovebox for storage. In a glovebox, 50 g of silicawas added to a 1L three neck flask and brought into the fume hood. Tothe flask was added pentane (120 g). An overhead stirrer was used toprovide stirring. With stirring, triethylaluminum (TEAL) in n-hexane(12.6 g of 24.2 wt. %) was added to the silica over approximately 5minutes at room temperature. The amount of TEAL was adjusted such thatthe total amount of TEAL (including the TEAL present as a viscositymodifier in the BEM added in the next step) was 0.555 mmol of Al per gof silica. The slurry was stirred for 1 hour at room temperature. Next,at room temperature, 32.5 g of a 20.4 wt. % solution of Butyl EthylMagnesium (BEM) in heptane from Akzo (which contains˜1.4% by weight ofTEAL) was added over about 10 minutes to give 1.2 mmol of BEM per gramof silica. A small exotherm was observed at this stage. The mixture wasstirred for 2 hours after the addition of the magnesium compound wascomplete. Next, the reaction mixture was cooled it an ice bath and 11.4g of dried tert-butyl chloride (t-BuCl) along with pentane (in a ˜2:1weight ratio of pentane to t-BuCl was used) was added to the mixtureover approximately 20 minutes. This caused the mixture of slurriedmaterials to thicken somewhat. After addition, the slurried materialswere stirred for a further 2 hours (Cl:Mg molar ratio=2.05). To theslurry was then added, at room temperature, 1.14 g of TiCl₄ along withisopentane (a 10:1 weight ratio of pentane to TiCl₄ was used) overapproximately 5 minutes. The mixture was then stirred for 2 hours andthen allowed to sit overnight. In the next step, 3.04 g of triethylamine(which has been previously dried over molecular sieves) was added to themixture at room temperature over about five minutes, followed bystirring for an additional 1 hour. Finally, to the slurry mixture wasadded, 20.0 g of a 25.5% by weight solution of tri-n-hexylaluminum inhexane over about 10 minutes. The mixture was then stirred for 45minutes. After this, the slurry was dried in vacuo until most of thesolvent was removed at which time the temperature was increased to 50°C. until the catalyst was fully dried. (Total Al:Ti=7.6:1; Mg:Ti=10;Cl:Mg=2.05; triethylamine:Ti=5; Ti loading=0.39 weight % based on theweight of the final catalyst).

Polymerization

Continuous ethylene/1-hexene gas phase copolymerization experiments wereconducted in a 56.4L Technical Scale Reactor (TSR) in continuous gasphase operation in the presence of hydrogen, nitrogen, the Ziegler-Nattacatalyst and triethylaluminum (TEAL) as a cocatalyst. Ethylenepolymerizations were run at 88° C. with a total operating pressure of300 pounds per square inch gauge (psig). Gas phase compositions forethylene was controlled via closed-loop process control to values of38.7. 1-Hexene was metered into the reactor in a molar flow ratio of0.070 or 0.071 relative to ethylene feed while hydrogen was metered intothe reactor in a molar feed ratio of 0.030 or 0.036 relative to ethylenefeed during polymerization. Nitrogen constituted the remainder of thegas phase mixture (approximately 48-50 mole %). A typical productionrate for these conditions is 2.0 to 3.0 kg of polyethylene per hour.Steady state polymerization conditions are provided in Table 1(C2=ethylene; C6=-hexene; C6/C2 is the molar feed ratio of eachcomponent to the reactor; H2/C2 is the molar feed ratio of eachcomponent to the reactor).

TABLE 1 Polymerization Conditions Ethylene Copolymer No. Inv. 1 Inv. 2Productivity (g PE/g Cat) 2200 2000 Hydrogen (mol %) 8.3 6.3 Ethylene(mol %) 38.7 38.7 C6/C2 (mol/mol feed) 0.071 0.070 H2/C2 (mol/mol feed)0.036 0.030 Temp (° C.) 88 88 Production rate (kg/hr) 2.5 2.5 ResidenceTime (hrs) 2 2 Bulk Density (lb per cubic foot) 28.5 28.7 Isopentane(weight %) 0 0

Pelletization of Granular Resins. The granular resins obtained from theabove polymerization process were pelletized. IRGANOX 1076 (ca.300 ppm),Irganox 1010 (ca. 200 ppm) and TNPP (ca. 1500 ppm), an antiblockingcompound (ca. 5000-6700 ppm), and a slip agent (ca. 1500 ppm) were dryblended with granular resin prior to pelletization. The resulting powderblend was extruded on Coperion ZSK26 twin-screw extruder with a screwdiameter of 25.5 mm and L/D ratio of 30/1 under nitrogen atmosphere tominimize polymer degradation. The pelletization conditions of theextruder were set at a melt temperature of 235° C. an output rate of 30to 40 lb/hr, a screw speed of 200 rpm and a pelletizer speed of 950 rpm.The pelleted resin was cooled and then collected for the resincharacterization and film evaluation.

Polymer data for the resulting inventive ethylene copolymers 1 and 2 areprovided in Table 2, along with data for a number of commerciallyavailable ethylene/1-hexene copolymers having similar densities and meltindices (I₂). Comparative resin A is an ethylene/1-hexene copolymerhaving a density of 0.919 g/cm³, a melt index (I₂) of 0.85 g/10 min, andis commercially available from NOVA Chemicals under the name TD-9022-D™.Comparative B is an ethylene/1-hexene copolymer having a density of0.922 g/cm³, a melt index (I₂) of 0.80 g/10 min, and is commerciallyavailable from Formosa Plastics Corporation. Comparative C is anethylene/1-hexene copolymer having a density of 0.920 g/cm³, a meltindex (I₂) of 0.91 g/10 min, and is commercially available fromExxonMobil. Comparative D is an ethylene/1-hexene copolymer having adensity of 0.919 g/cm³, a melt index (I₂) of 0.53 g/10 min, and iscommercially available LyondellBasell Industries. Comparative E is anethylene/1-hexene copolymer having a density of 0.916 g/cm³, a meltindex (I₂) of 1.04 g/10 min, and is commercially available from WestlakeIndustries.

TABLE 2 Example No. Inv. 1 Inv. 2 Comp. A Comp. B Comp. C Comp. D Comp.E Density, g/cm³ 0.920 0.921 0.9119 0.9122 0.920 0.919 0.916 Melt index,I₂ (dg/min) 0.98 0.64 0.85 0.80 0.91 0.53 1.04 Melt flow ratio, I₂₁/I₂25.7 25.4 28.4 25.6 24.8 28.1 28.0 M_(n) 33461 44529 36566 38470 3806737680 40596 M_(w) 113577 121458 123466 118128 109873 138790 112062 M_(z)285489 266238 370770 276881 247973 405167 291670 M_(w)/M_(n) 3.39 2.733.38 3.07 2.89 3.68 2.76 M_(z)/M_(w) 2.51 2.19 3.00 2.34 No. of shortchain branches 17.3 16.5 17.8 17.5 16.6 16.8 16.6 per 1000 carbonsWeight % 1-hexene 9.7 9.3 10.0 9.8 9.4 9.4 9.3 GPC - FTIR Slope −5.79−5.74 −7.94 −3.10 −8.9 −10.8 −8.18 DSC Melt Temp (° C.) 124.8 124.7124.2 125.8 124.3 123.9 122.1 Polymer Crystallinity, wt % 43.0 45.3 42.146.5 42.5 44.1 43.0 SHI (ω = 5) 0.54 0.47 0.56 0.53 0.56 0.39 0.56 Bulkdensity, lbs/ft³ 28.5 28.7 23.2 — — — —

The data in Table 2 shows that the inventive copolymers 1 and 2 havereduced melt flow ratios relative to Comparative copolymers A, D and E.The data also shows that the inventive resins have a normal comonomerdistribution having a slope that is significantly lower than thatobserved for comparative copolymers A, C, D and E, but which issignificantly higher than that observed for comparative copolymer B.Indeed, the inventive ethylene copolymers 1 and 2 have a normalconomonmer distribution, but the slope of the distribution liessomewhere between that expected for a Ziegler-Natta catalyst and thatexpected for a single site catalyst. The slope of the comonomerdistribution is determined by GPC-FTIR and is defined by: SCB/1000C atMW of 300,000−SCB/1000C at MW of 30,000 where “−” is a minus sign,SCB/1000C is the comonomer content determined as the number of shortchain branches per thousand carbons and MW is the correspondingmolecular weight (i.e. the absolute molecular weight) on a GPC orGPC-FTIR chromatograph. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and by the data inTable 1, the slope of the comonomer distribution for inventivecopolymers 1 and 2 is less than about −3.5, but greater than about −7.5.

Further, as can be seen from the data in Table 2, inventive copolymers 1and 2 each have a bulk density of more than 28 lbs/ft³, while thecomparative copolymer A has an average bulk density of about 23 lbs/ft³.

The inventive ethylene copolymers 1 and 2 can be distinguished from anumber of commercially available ethylene/1-hexene resins using crossfractionation chromatography (CFC). In cross fractionationchromatography, the ethylene copolymer is first fractionated using atemperature rising elution fractionation (TREF) method, followed by theanalysis of each of the eluted fractions with gel permeationchromatography (GPC) and refractive index (RI) detection. Hence, theweight average molecular weight, Mw of a polymer fraction eluting at aspecific TREF temperature, T, can be determined as M_(wT). Thecross-fractionation elution analysis for inventive ethylene copolymer 1is shown in FIG. 2A.

It is apparent, from the data provided in FIG. 2A, that the ethylenecopolymer has a bimodal TREF elution profile. The bimodality is definedby two distinct peaks or maximums present in the TREF elution curve: thefirst peak or maximum of intensity occurs at a TREF elution temperatureof Tp1; the second peak or maximum of intensity occurs at a TREF elutiontemperature of Tp2. The CFC data for inventive ethylene copolymer 1 alsoshows that the GPC determined M_(wT) values (filled circles) graduallyincreased with an increase in the TREF fraction elution temperatures.Hence, a quadratic equation was chosen to model the relationship betweenthe weight average molecular weight and elution temperature shown inFIG. 2A,M _(wT) =a×T ² +b×T+c.  )1)

Simple curve fitting (see the dashed line in FIG. 2A) of the CFC datathen provided the values for the constants a, b and c.

Using this model, we were able to define a so called “characteristiccomposition distribution parameter” β_(Tp1) which could differentiatebetween different ethylene copolymer compositions (see below).

The “characteristic composition distribution parameter”, β_(Tp1) isdefined as the first derivative (or gradient) of Equation 1 at atemperature equal to the temperature at which the first of two elutionpeaks or maxima occurs in the cross fractionation data, Tp1. Hence,βTp1=(dMWT/dT)|T=Tp1=2a×Tp1+b.  (2)

A similar “characteristic composition distribution parameter”, βTp2 canbe defined as the first derivative (or gradient) of Equation 1, taken ata temperature Tp2, which corresponds to the location of the peak elutiontemperature of the higher of two elution peaks observed in the crossfractionation chromatograph. Hence,βTp2=(dMwT/dT)|T=Tp2=2a×Tp2+b.  (3)

Finally, as the CFC data collected for a series of ethylene copolymersshowed that there was a significant difference in the ethylene copolymerfractions eluting at the temperatures Tp1 and Tp2, another parameter wasdefined to capture the relative difference between these two fractionsfor each of the ethylene copolymers, the so called “characteristiccomposition transition parameter”, ϕ_(Tp1→Tp2). The ϕ_(Tp1→Tp2) isdefined as the first derivative (or gradient) of Equation 1 between thetwo elution intensity peak temperatures, Tp2 and Tp1. Hence,ϕ_(Tp1→Tp2)=β_(Tp2)−β_(Tp1)=2a×(Tp2−Tp1)  (4)

Without wishing to be bound by theory, the smaller the ϕ_(Tp1→Tp2)value, the more uniform the ethylene copolymer comonomer incorporationis with respect to the molecular weight of the ethylene copolymer.

FIGS. 2A, 2B and 2C show the CFC analysis (and the quadratic equationmodel curve fitting as the dashed line) of inventive ethylene copolymer1, inventive ethylene copolymer 2 and comparative ethylene copolymer Arespectively. Relevant CFC data together with the correspondingquadratic equation model curve fitting values (i.e. M_(wT)=a×T²+b×T+c)are provided for these resins in Table 3.

TABLE 3 CFC Modelling Data Example No. Inv. 1 Inv. 2 Comp. A Mw at 40°C. 90600 86100 75500 Mw at 55° C. 111000 100000 89500 Mw at 65° C.126000 118000 110000 Mw at 75° C. 131000 132000 122000 Mw at 85° C.136000 142000 138000 Mw at 92° C. 159000 157000 173000 Mw at 96° C.177000 166000 202000 a 10.7 6.8 36.0 b −131 483 −2873 c 82090 55433136201

Similar CFC data was obtained and modelled in an analogous way forcomparative resins B, C, D and E. The values for Tp1, Tp2, the value forthe characteristic composition distribution parameter, β_(Tp1) as wellas the characteristic composition transition parameter, ϕ Tp1→Tp2, theweight average molecular weight at Tp1, the amount of the fractioneluting at ≥94° C., and the composition distribution breadth index(CDBI₅₀) for the inventive and comparative ethylene copolymers aresummarized in Table 4.

TABLE 4 CFC and TREF Data and Parameters β_(Tp1) ϕ_(Tp1 → Tp2) HD @Example No. Tp1 (° C.) Tp2 (° C.) (Daltons/° C.) Mw_(Tp1) (Daltons/° C.)T ≥ 94° C. (wt %) CDBI₅₀ (%) Inv. 1 86.9 96.8 1729 151508 212 38.2 29.7Inv. 2 86.5 96.7 1660 148100 139 38.1 29.4 Comp. A 86.0 96.1 3312 155066726 32.6 31.9 Comp. B 86.6 96.9 1306 116666 270 46.4 25.0 Comp. C 86.996.3 2921 150275 508 35.3 30.8 Comp. D 86.2 96.4 3018 143821 543 37.329.7 Comp. E 86.0 96.1 3537 151404 772 28.7 34.8

The inventive ethylene copolymers 1 and 2 are distinguished from thecommercially available ethylene/1-hexene resins using the“characteristic composition distribution parameter”, β_(Tp1). As shownin FIG. 3, which plots β_(Tp1) (on the y-axis) against(SCB/1000C−2.5×I₂) (on the x-axis) and shows a plot of the linecorresponding to the condition where: β_(Tp1)−22750−400(SCB/1000C−2.5×I₂), the inventive ethylene copolymers 1 and 2 satisfythe condition: β_(Tp1)≤22750−1400 (SCB/1000C−2.5×I₂), whereas each ofthe comparative ethylene copolymers A-E do not.

The inventive ethylene copolymers 1 and 2 are further distinguished fromthe commercially available ethylene/1-hexene resins using the“characteristic composition transition parameter”, ϕ_(Tp1→Tp2). As shownin FIG. 4, which plots ϕ_(Tp1→Tp2) (on the y-axis) against[SCB/1000C+0.5×(I₂₁/I₂)−2×I₂] (on the x-axis) and shows a plot of theline corresponding to the condition where: ϕ_(T1→T2)=4230−40[SCB/1000C+0.5×(I₂₁/I₂)−2×I₂], the inventive ethylene copolymers 1 and 2satisfy the condition: ϕ_(T1→T2)≤4230−140 [SCB/1000C+0.5×(I₂₁/I₂)−2×I₂],whereas each of the comparative ethylene copolymers A-E do not.

Blown Film

Conditions: Gloucester run conditions: 85 mil Die Gap, 100 lb/hr OutputRate; 14″ Frost Line Height and T=425−430° C.; 1000 ppm of calciumstearate masterbatch was added to the resins while the films were made.

Film data for a film made from the inventive ethylene copolymer 1 isprovided in Table 5 along with data for a film made from comparativeethylene copolymer A.

TABLE 5 Film Properties Ethylene Copolymer Inv. 1 Comp. A Additives:Antiblock (ppm)/ 5109/1545 6300/1500 Slip (ppm) Film Thickness/Blow-upRatio 0.8 mil/ 1.0 mil/ 0.8 mil/ 1.0 mil/ 2.0:1 2.5:1 2.0:1 2.5:1 DartImpact (g/mil) 388 465 178 466 ASTM Film Puncture @ Break Maximum Force(lb) 4.0 4.5 4.2 4.6 Elongation (in.) 2.1 2.1 2.1 2.1 Total Energy(J/mm) 30 27 31 28 TEF & Lube Puncture (J/mm) 44 40 46 44 MD Tear(g/mil) 436 404 456 446 TD Tear (g/mil) 895 655 981 676 1% MD SecantModulus (MPa) 194 199 182 170 1% TD Secant Modulus (MPa) 196 208 174 181MD Tensile Strength (MPa) 53.8 56.9 63.0 58.9 MD Ultimate Elongation (%)440 615 387 584 MD Yield Strength (MPa) 10.1 10 9.7 8.8 Gloss at 45° 3945 30 34 Haze (%) 17.9 16.6 22.1 20 Reblock at 60° C. (gram) 67 73 78 82As can be seen by the data in Table 5, a 1 mil film made from theinventive copolymer 1 has a similar dart impact strength (465 g/mil) toan analogous film made from the comparative copolymer A (466 g/min) whenthe film is blown at a blow up ratio of 2.5:1. However, at a lower blowup ratio of 2:1, a 0.8 mil film made from the inventive copolymer 1 hasa better dart impact strength of 388 g/mil, than an analogous film madefrom comparative copolymer A, where the dart impact strength is only 178g/mil. As a result, the inventive composition offers greater dart impactvalues on a wider variety of commercially used blown film lines, many ofwhich employ the lower blow up ratio.

Each of the films made from inventive copolymer 1 also had improved 1%MD secant modulus, and improved 1% TD secant modulus relative toanalogous films made from comparative copolymer A. Also, with regard toboth gloss and haze, each of the films made from inventive copolymer 1have improved properties when compared to analogous films made fromcomparative copolymer A.

Non-limiting embodiments of the present disclosure include thefollowing:

Embodiment A. An ethylene copolymer comprising ethylene and an alphaolefin having 3-8 carbon atoms, the ethylene copolymer having a densityof from 0.912 g/cm³ to 0.925 g/cm³, a melt index (I₂) of from 0.1 g/10min to 5.0 g/10 min, a melt flow ratio (I₂₁/I₂) of from 20 to 30, and anormal comonomer distribution profile in a GPC-FTIR analysis, whereinthe normal comonomer distribution profile has a slope of from −3.5 to−7.5, where the slope is defined as the number of short chain branchesper 1000 carbons at a molecular weight of 300,000 minus the number ofshort chain branches per 1000 carbons at a molecular weight of 30,000.

Embodiment B. The ethylene copolymer of Embodiment A wherein theethylene copolymer has a characteristic composition distributionparameter, β_(Tp1) which satisfies the relationship: β_(Tp1)≤22750−400(SCB/1000C−2.5×I₂).

Embodiment C. The ethylene copolymer of Embodiment A or B wherein theethylene copolymer has a characteristic composition transitionparameter, ϕ_(Tp1→Tp2) which satisfies the relationship:ϕ_(Tp1→Tp2)≤4230−40 [SCB/1000C+0.5×(I₂₁/I₂)−2×I₂].

Embodiment D. The ethylene copolymer of Embodiment A, B, or C whereinthe ethylene copolymer has a molecular weight distribution (M_(w)/M_(n))of from 2.5 to 4.0.

Embodiment E. The ethylene copolymer of Embodiment A, B, C or D whereinthe ethylene copolymer has a multimodal profile in a TREF analysis, themultimodal profile comprising two intensity maxima occurring at elutiontemperatures Tp1 and Tp2, wherein Tp1 is between 80° C. and 90° C. andTp2 is between 90° C. and 100° C.

Embodiment F. The ethylene copolymer of Embodiment A, B, C, D, or Ewherein less than 0.5 wt % of the ethylene copolymer elutes at atemperature of above 100° C. in a TREF analysis.

Embodiment G. The ethylene copolymer of Embodiment A, B, C, D, E, or Fwherein the alpha-olefin is 1-hexene.

Embodiment H. The ethylene copolymer of Embodiment A, B, C, D, E, F, orG wherein the ethylene copolymer has a CDBI₅₀ of from 20 wt % to 40 wt%.

Embodiment I. The ethylene copolymer of Embodiment A, B, C, D, E, F, G,or H wherein the ethylene copolymer has a melt index (I₂) of from 0.2 to2.0 g/10 min.

Embodiment J. The ethylene copolymer Embodiment A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H,or I wherein when made into a blown film having a 0.8 mil thickness at adie gap of 85 mil and a blow up ratio (BUR) of 2:1, has a dart impact ofgreater than 350 g/mil.

Embodiment K. The ethylene copolymer of Embodiment A, B, C, D, E, F, G,H, or I wherein the ethylene copolymer is made with a Ziegler-Nattacatalyst.

Embodiment L. The ethylene copolymer of Embodiment A, B, C, D, E, F, G,H, or I wherein the ethylene copolymer is made with a Ziegler-Nattacatalyst in a gas phase polymerization process.

Embodiment M. The ethylene copolymer of Embodiment K or L wherein theZiegler-Natta catalyst comprises:

a) a calcined silica support;

b) a first aluminum compound having the formulaAl¹R_(b)(OR)_(a)X_(3−(a+b)), wherein a+b=3 and b≥1, R is a C₁₋₁₀ alkylradical, and X is a chlorine atom;

c) a magnesium compound having the formula Mg(R⁵)₂ where each R⁵ isindependently selected from the group consisting of C₁₋₈ alkyl radicals;

d) a reactive organic halide selected from the group consisting of CCl4and C₃₋₆ secondary and tertiary alkyl chlorides or a mixture thereof;

e) a titanium compound having the formula Ti(OR²)_(c)X_(d) wherein R² isselected from the group consisting of a C₁₋₄ alkyl radical, and a C₆₋₁₀aromatic radical, X is selected from the group consisting of a chlorineatom and a bromine atom, c is 0 or an integer up to 4 and d is 0 or aninteger up to 4 and the sum of c+d is the valence of the Ti atom;

f) an electron donor wherein the electron donor is a trialkylaminecompound; and

g) a second aluminum compound having the formulaAl²R_(b)(OR)_(a)X_(3−(a+b)), wherein a+b=3 and b≥1, R is a C₁₋₁₀ alkylradical, and X is a chlorine atom.

Embodiment N. The ethylene copolymer of Embodiment A, B, C, D, E, F, G,H, I, K, L, or M having a bulk density of greater than 25 lbs/ft³.

Embodiment O. A blown film comprising the ethylene copolymer ofEmbodiment A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, K, L, or M.

Embodiment P. The blown film of Embodiment O having a dart impact of ≥350 g/mil when the film has a thickness of 0.8 mil and is made at a diegap of 85 mil and a blow up ratio (BUR) of 2:1.

Embodiment Q. The blown film of Embodiment O having a machine directiontear of ≥400 g/mil when the film has a thickness of 0.8 mil and is madeat a die gap of 85 mil and a blow up ratio (BUR) of 2:1.

Embodiment R. An ethylene copolymer comprising ethylene and an alphaolefin having 3-8 carbon atoms, the ethylene copolymer having a densityof from 0.912 g/cm³ to 0.925 g/cm³, a melt index (I₂) of from 0.1 g/10min to 5.0 g/10 min, a melt flow ratio (I₂₁/I₂) of from 20 to 30, anormal comonomer distribution profile in a GPC-FTIR analysis, and acharacteristic composition distribution parameter, Pro which satisfiesthe relationship: β_(Tp1)≤22750−400 (SCB/1000C−2.5×I₂).

Embodiment S. An ethylene copolymer comprising ethylene and an alphaolefin having 3-8 carbon atoms, the ethylene copolymer having a densityof from 0.912 g/cm³ to 0.925 g/cm³, a melt index (I₂) of from 0.1 g/10min to 5.0 g/10 min, a melt flow ratio (I₂₁/I₂) of from 20 to 30, anormal comonomer distribution profile in a GPC-FTIR analysis, and acharacteristic composition transition parameter, ϕ_(Tp1→Tp2) whichsatisfies the relationship: ϕ_(Tp1→Tp2)≤4230−140[SCB/1000C+0.5×(I₂₁/I₂)−2×I₂].

What is claimed is:
 1. A cast film comprising an ethylene copolymercomprising ethylene and an alpha olefin having 3-8 carbon atoms, theethylene copolymer having a density of from 0.912 g/cm³ to 0.925 g/cm³,a melt index (I₂) of from 0.1 g/10 min to 5.0 g/10 min, a melt flowratio (I₂₁/I₂) of from 20 to 30, and a normal comonomer distributionprofile in a GPC-FTIR analysis, wherein the normal comonomerdistribution profile has a slope of from −3.5 to −7.5, where the slopeis defined as the number of short chain branches per 1000 carbons at amolecular weight of 300,000 minus the number of short chain branches per1000 carbons at a molecular weight of 30,000.
 2. The cast film of claim1 wherein the ethylene copolymer has a characteristic compositiondistribution parameter, β_(Tp1) which satisfies the relationship:β_(Tp1)≤22750−1400 (SCB/1000C−2.5×I₂).
 3. The cast film of claim 1wherein the ethylene copolymer has a characteristic compositiontransition parameter, ϕ_(Tp1→Tp2) which satisfies the relationship:ϕ_(Tp1→Tp2)≤4230−140 [SCB/1000C+0.5×(I₂₁/I₂)−2×I₂].
 4. The cast film ofclaim 1 wherein the ethylene copolymer has a molecular weightdistribution (M_(w)/M_(n)) of from 2.5 to 4.0.
 5. The cast film of claim1 wherein the ethylene copolymer has a multimodal profile in a TREFanalysis, the multimodal profile comprising two intensity maximaoccurring at elution temperatures Tp1 and Tp2, wherein Tp1 is between80° C. and 90° C. and Tp2 is between 90° C. and 100° C.
 6. The cast filmof claim 1 wherein less than 0.5 wt % of the ethylene copolymer elutesat a temperature of above 100° C. in a TREF analysis.
 7. The cast filmof claim 1 wherein the alpha-olefin is 1-hexene.
 8. The cast film ofclaim 1 wherein the ethylene copolymer has a CDBI₅₀ of from 20 wt % to40 wt %.
 9. The cast film of claim 1 wherein the ethylene copolymer hasa melt index (I₂) of from 0.2 to 2.0 g/10 min.
 10. The cast film ofclaim 1 wherein the ethylene copolymer is made with a Ziegler-Nattacatalyst.
 11. The cast film of claim 1 wherein the ethylene copolymer ismade with a Ziegler-Natta catalyst in a gas phase process.
 12. The castfilm of claim 11 wherein the Ziegler-Natta catalyst comprises: a) acalcined silica support; b) a first aluminum compound having the formulaAl¹R_(b)(OR)_(a)X_(3−(a+b)), wherein a+b=3 and b≥1, R is a C₁₋₁₀ alkylradical, and X is a chlorine atom; c) a magnesium compound having theformula Mg(R⁵)₂ where each R⁵ is independently selected from the groupconsisting of C₁₋₈ alkyl radicals; d) a reactive organic halide selectedfrom the group consisting of CCl₄ and C₃₋₆ secondary and tertiary alkylchlorides or a mixture thereof; d) a titanium compound having theformula Ti(OR²)_(c)X_(d)wherein R² is selected from the group consistingof a C₁₋₄ alkyl radical, and a C₆₋₁₀ aromatic radical, X is selectedfrom the group consisting of a chlorine atom and a bromine atom, c is 0or an integer up to 4 and d is 0 or an integer up to 4 and the sum ofc+d is the valence of the Ti atom; e) an electron donor wherein theelectron donor is a trialkylamine compound; and f) a second aluminumcompound having the formula Al¹R_(b)(OR)_(a)X_(3−(a+b), wherein a+b=)3and b≥1, R is a C₁₋₁₀ alkyl radical, and X is a chlorine atom.
 13. Thecast film of claim 1 wherein the ethylene copolymer has an average bulkdensity of greater than 25 lbs/ft³.